What New Jersey Residents Need to Know About Obamacare for 2024

 

Essential facts about the Affordable Care Act (ACA or Obamacare) in New Jersey, including whether you must get health insurance, how much it costs, and how you can save money.

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New Jersey open enrollment for 2024 health insurance plans runs from November 1, 2023 until January 31, 2024.

This website provides information about getting health insurance under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), including:

To begin, keep in mind these key points about health insurance in New Jersey:

1. New Jersey law requires you to have health insurance.

The federal tax penalty for going without health insurance ended in 2019, but a handful of states, including New Jersey, have enacted laws to replace it. The requirement, called the "state shared responsibility tax," says that New Jersey residents must have health insurance that meets the requirements of the Affordable Care Act or face a state tax penalty. (For more information about how the penalty works, including penalty amounts, see the website of the New Jersey Treasury.)

To find out whether you qualify for an exemption to the health insurance requirement, see Do I Have to Get Health Insurance in New Jersey?

2. Open enrollment for 2024 health insurance plans runs from Wednesday, November 1, 2023 through Tuesday, January 31, 2024.

New Jersey residents can sign up for 2024 health coverage from November 1, 2023 to January 31, 2024. For most people, if you enroll by December 15, your coverage will begin on January 1, 2024. 

Once the open enrollment period ends, you can get covered for the rest of the year only if you qualify for a special enrollment period, including job or income loss. 

To learn more, see What Happens If I Missed the New Jersey Obamacare Enrollment Deadline?

 3. You may qualify for new Affordable Care Act subsidies.

In 2021, President Biden signed the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA). The law provided $1.9 trillion of federal aid to Americans struggling with the COVID-19 crisis, including additional premium subsidies for those who purchase health insurance through GetCoveredNJ. In 2022, the Inflation Reduction Act extended these more generous subsidies through 2025. Here’s a quick summary of the types of available subsidies. In addition, New Jersey offers state financial assistance for 2024. Here’s a quick summary of the available subsidies.

Federal tax credits. Under ARPA, no one will have to pay more than 8.5% of their household income for a mid-level plan purchased from GetCoveredNJ. Technically, the subsidies are tax credits, but you can choose to have them automatically deducted from the cost of your monthly premiums.

Cost-sharing subsidies. More than half of the people who purchase coverage through GetCoveredNJ receive assistance through cost-sharing reductions (CSRs). CSRs automatically reduce your premiums and lower your costs when you use your insurance benefits—for example, when you go to the doctor, get lab work, or have to stay in the hospital.

CSRs are available to people who make between 100% and 250% of the federal poverty level. (For 2023 health plans, that means a family of four in New Jersey can't earn more than $75,000 and an individual not more than $36,450.) But these benefits are available only on silver plans. If you think you may qualify, look carefully at the costs for silver plans available at GetCoveredNJ while shopping for coverage.

New Jersey health plan savings. New Jerseyans earning under 400% of the federal poverty level can get additional financial help. Individuals may be able to lower their insurance costs by up to $578 per year, while a family of four may see their annual cost drop by as much as $2,313. You'll find out whether you qualify when you apply for health coverage through GetCoveredNJ. This new program is funded by a 2.5% tax on individual and large group health plans sold in New Jersey. 

Medicaid. You may qualify for free or low-cost coverage through Medicaid in New Jersey if your income is very low.

All subsidies will be automatically calculated when you apply for a plan through GetCoveredNJ.

For more information, see Ways to Save Money on Obamacare in New Jersey.

4. You can get help signing up if you need it.

The Biden administration has greatly increased enrollment assistance, making it much easier to get the information you need to get covered. To connect with local support resources, see How To Sign Up for Obamacare in New Jersey.


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Jurisdictional relevance: ST

There are versions of this article for each State.



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