COLUMBIA, S.C. — Thousands of South Carolinians who previously did not qualify for healthcare coverage in the open market will have the option this enrollment period.
This change comes after the IRS said it fixed what it called a glitch in the program relating to family coverage.
“For all these years since the affordable care act was passed, this has been referred to as the family glitch but is really more like a family stranglehold," Shelli Quenga with The Palmetto Project said.
What's known as the "family glitch" in the affordable medical insurance program excluded thousands of people from coverage. Several people who applied previously weren't eligible for discounts because of the glitch.
“If a person has an offer of coverage from their employer that is affordable, which most employers offer affordable coverage to the employee, when you go to add your dependents, so your spouse or your children then, that’s when the premium gets super high," Quenga said.
The federal marketplace only considered the cost of the employee's coverage alone. Dependents were excluded from the cost and forfeited affordable coverage for many households.
Chris Johnson is the CEO of Lourie Life & Health. He said that on Nov. 1 the open market will consider the full cost of coverage including dependents.
“So that’s why we’re now seeing, throughout the United States, over one million or more families that previously were ineligible for help for discounts to reduce their monthly premium would be now with the fix to the family glitch,” Johnson said.
According to Quenga, 47,000 additional South Carolinians will now have the opportunity to receive affordable health care based on the full cost of coverage.
Those who were denied in the past can apply again this year. Open enrollment in the marketplace starts Nov. 1 and runs through Jan. 15.