Elizabeth Rivelli has nearly five years of experience covering insurance for finance publications. She has expertise in various insurance lines, including car insurance, health insurance, travel insurance, life insurance and others. In her writing, s.
Elizabeth Rivelli Insurance WriterElizabeth Rivelli has nearly five years of experience covering insurance for finance publications. She has expertise in various insurance lines, including car insurance, health insurance, travel insurance, life insurance and others. In her writing, s.
Written By Elizabeth Rivelli Insurance WriterElizabeth Rivelli has nearly five years of experience covering insurance for finance publications. She has expertise in various insurance lines, including car insurance, health insurance, travel insurance, life insurance and others. In her writing, s.
Elizabeth Rivelli Insurance WriterElizabeth Rivelli has nearly five years of experience covering insurance for finance publications. She has expertise in various insurance lines, including car insurance, health insurance, travel insurance, life insurance and others. In her writing, s.
Insurance Writer Les Masterson Deputy Editor, InsuranceLes Masterson is a deputy editor and insurance analyst at Forbes Advisor. He has been a journalist, reporter, editor and content creator for more than 25 years. He has covered insurance for a decade, including auto, home, life and health. Before cove.
Les Masterson Deputy Editor, InsuranceLes Masterson is a deputy editor and insurance analyst at Forbes Advisor. He has been a journalist, reporter, editor and content creator for more than 25 years. He has covered insurance for a decade, including auto, home, life and health. Before cove.
Les Masterson Deputy Editor, InsuranceLes Masterson is a deputy editor and insurance analyst at Forbes Advisor. He has been a journalist, reporter, editor and content creator for more than 25 years. He has covered insurance for a decade, including auto, home, life and health. Before cove.
Les Masterson Deputy Editor, InsuranceLes Masterson is a deputy editor and insurance analyst at Forbes Advisor. He has been a journalist, reporter, editor and content creator for more than 25 years. He has covered insurance for a decade, including auto, home, life and health. Before cove.
| Deputy Editor, Insurance
Updated: Feb 15, 2024, 5:20am
Editorial Note: We earn a commission from partner links on Forbes Advisor. Commissions do not affect our editors' opinions or evaluations.
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If you have health insurance through your parents, you can typically stay on their plan until you turn age 26, though there are exceptions.
Losing your parent’s health insurance doesn’t mean you should forgo coverage, but that’s what many 26-year-olds decide. The U.S. Census says 18% of 26-year-olds are uninsured, which is nearly 4 percentage points higher than 25-year-olds, and is the highest uninsured rate of any age.
There are plenty of ways to get your own health insurance once you turn 26, including through your employer, a subsidized plan through the Affordable Care Act (ACA) marketplace or a government program like Medicaid.
Young adults are allowed to stay on a parent’s health insurance policy until they turn 26, according to the Affordable Care Act (ACA). In most cases, you can remain on your parent’s health insurance plan even if you:
Depending your parent’s health insurance, you may lose coverage the moment you turn 26, the end of that month or the end of that calendar year. If your parents have health insurance through their employer, you could be removed as a dependent on your 26th birthday (but it depends on the state and plan).
If your parent’s coverage is through the ACA marketplace, you won’t lose coverage right away. You can remain on a parent’s ACA health insurance plan through Dec. 31 of the year you turn 26. That means if you turn 26 in the middle of the year, you will still have coverage until the end of that year.
Some states, like New York and Florida, allow young adults to stay on a parent’s health insurance plan until age 30. Many states also allow disabled dependents to remain on their parent’s health plan indefinitely.
Each state has its own requirements for children over age 26 who want to stay on their parent’s health insurance. Below are the states that allow dependent children to stay on a parent’s health insurance past age 26 and the eligibility requirements.
Children must be unmarried and have no dependents of their own, and live with their parents or are students.
No age limitDisabled dependents not capable of self-sustaining employment can stay on their parents’ health insurance indefinitely.
No age limit Disabled dependents can stay on their parents’ health insurance indefinitely. Applies to veterans only. No age limitDisabled dependents not capable of self-sustaining employment can stay on their parents’ health insurance indefinitely.
No age limit Disabled dependents and full-time students can stay on their parents’ health insurance indefinitely. Massachusetts No age limitDisabled dependents not capable of self-sustaining employment can stay on their parents’ health insurance indefinitely.
No age limit Disabled dependents can stay on their parents’ health insurance indefinitely. No age limitDisabled dependents not capable of self-sustaining employment can stay on their parents’ health insurance indefinitely.
No age limitDisabled dependents not capable of self-sustaining employment can stay on their parents’ health insurance indefinitely.
New Jersey Children must be unmarried and have no dependents of their own.Children must be unmarried and a resident of New York. There is no age limit for unmarried, disabled dependents not capable of self-sustaining employment.
No age limitDisabled dependents not capable of self-sustaining employment can stay on their parents’ health insurance indefinitely.
No age limit Disabled dependents can stay on their parents’ health insurance indefinitely. PennsylvaniaChildren must be unmarried, have no dependents of their own, and be a Pennsylvania resident or a full-time student.
Rhode Island No age limit Disabled dependents can stay on their parents’ health insurance indefinitely. South Carolina No age limitDisabled dependents not capable of self-sustaining employment can stay on their parents’ health insurance indefinitely.
South Dakota 29 or no age depending on situationFull-time student until the age of 29. Disabled dependents not capable of self-sustaining employment can stay on their parents’ health insurance indefinitely.
Children must be unmarried and don’t have the option to get health insurance through their employer. Source: National Conference of State Legislatures Source: National Conference of State Legislatures See More See LessThere are multiple health insurance options if you’re losing your parent’s health insurance coverage. Your coverage options after age 26 depends on factors like your employment status, income and budget.
One of the easiest ways to get health insurance as a 26-year-old is through your employer if your company offers group health insurance as an employee benefit.
One of the biggest benefits of group health insurance is that it’s usually more affordable than an individual health plan unless that plan is heavily subsidized. In most cases, your employer pays a large portion of the monthly premium (or the entire premium), and the rest gets taken out of your paycheck.
Companies pay an annual average of $6,440 for single coverage premiums, while employees pick up $1,299 a year on average, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation. That’s an average of $108 a month.
When the Affordable Care Act (ACA) was passed in 2010, it led to the formation of the health insurance marketplace, where individuals and families can compare available health insurance plans. You can also qualify for premium tax credits and subsidies to reduce your costs if your income is below 400% of the federal poverty level. That’s $54,360 for an individual, $73,240 for a couple and $92,120 for a family of three.
Without those subsidies, ACA marketplace plans can be costly. The average unsubsidized ACA plan costs $386 monthly for a 27-year-old and $412 for a 30-year-old.
Most adults can only enroll in a marketplace plan during open enrollment, which is Nov. 1 to Jan. 15 in most states. Turning 26 and losing coverage through a parent is a qualifying life event that also allows you to purchase a plan via a special enrollment period (SEP) at any point during the year.
It’s possible to purchase health insurance outside the ACA marketplace, directly through a health insurance company. Some insurance companies sell individual health insurance plans directly to consumers. The same health plans may or may not be available through the marketplace, too.
Finding a health insurance company that sells private individual plans can be challenging. You may need to work with an insurance broker to find a company that sells private health insurance policies in your state. But you can’t qualify for premium tax credits and subsidies if you buy a plan outside the ACA marketplace.
Catastrophic health insurance plans can be an affordable way for young adults to get health insurance after age 26. These plans are sold through the health insurance marketplace.
Catastrophic plans aren’t available to everyone. Catastrophic health plans are only for people under age 30, or people over age 30 who have a hardship exemption or affordability exemption and can’t afford a marketplace or job-based plan.
Catastrophic health plans have low premiums, but the deductibles are extremely high. You must meet your deductible before your plan will start covering certain medical services, so you end up paying for most of your medical care out-of-pocket. On the plus side, some routine and preventative care is covered for free before your deductible is met.
The average monthly cost for catastrophic health insurance is $247 for a 27-year-old and $267 for a 30-year-old.
COBRA health insurance, which is an acronym for the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act, is a federal law that allows you to keep your group health insurance plan if you experience certain life events, such as getting laid off. Examples of qualifying events include:
COBRA usually allows you to keep your health benefits for 18 or 36 months, but it depends on the qualifying event. Not all group health insurance plans are COBRA-eligible, such as health plans from small employers.
The premiums can be very expensive since COBRA premiums aren’t subsidized. You instead usually pay the full monthly premium yourself. For instance, using the average $7,739 annual cost for overall premiums for single coverage in the employer-sponsored health insurance market, you would pay an average of $645 monthly with no help from the employer and that doesn’t include a 2% administrative fee that the COBRA law allows.
Medicaid is a health insurance program that is jointly funded by states and the federal government. Medicaid benefits are available to low-income individuals and families, pregnant women and people with disabilities. If you meet the income requirements in your state, you can apply for Medicaid through the health insurance marketplace or your state’s Medicaid agency. Medicaid costs are based on household income.
Medicaid plans cover a variety of medical services, including hospitalization, doctor’s visits, diagnostic testing and imaging, home health services, prescription drugs and physical therapy. All Medicaid plans provide dental coverage for children under 21, but not all plans have dental coverage for adults.
Short-term health insurance can help you get temporary coverage during a transitional period, like turning 26 and losing coverage through your parents, or waiting to start a new full-time job with health benefits.
Short-term health insurance can be a cheap option for people who don’t expect many health care needs, but there are a few downsides. Pre-existing conditions aren’t usually covered, deductibles are usually high and short-term health plans often don’t cover many services that are basic in an ACA plan like prescription drugs and mental health.
