Obamacare has many deadlines for various aspects of the plan. Annual open enrollment, special open enrollment, payment due date and termination in coverage each have separate dates. Understanding more about each of these deadlines is important for all Americans when it comes to buying health insurance.

January 10
Premium due date for the insurance coverage of the individual’s choice to become effective January 1. The insurance coverage has to be chosen by this date to ensure that coverage is effective by this time to miss the penalty fee for the year.

After January 10
Any premiums or enrollments that are done after this date become effective on February 1.

March 31
If there is no insurance coverage obtained by March 31, 2014, a $95 tax penalty is then charged to the individual. If coverage is elected by this date, there are 90 days to pay the premium. However, once the insured is enrolled in the coverage plan, the company must pay for any incurred claims during the first 30 days regardless of whether the premium was received or not. The insurance company is not required to pay for any claims that occur during the last 60 days of the 90-day period if the insured does not pay their premium.

November 15 through December 7, 2015
Next time for open enrollment for insurance coverage. This is when people looking for insurance can use the marketplace to find affordable plans from different insurance companies.

If open enrollment is missed, you may be eligible for a 60-day enrollment period due to the following circumstances:

• You become unemployed or laid off, or the number of hours that you worked was severely reduced
• Change in income
• Change in marriage status, such as becoming newly married or divorced
• Change of dependents in your household such as adopting a baby or having a baby
• Moving to a different state that offers different insurance coverage
• Any large, life changing events may qualify

Quick Info Guide – Things You Should Know

If the first premium payment is paid by the insured and you stop paying after the first payment, the insurance company cannot drop you for 90 days.

If the premium payment is not paid in the first 30 days, the effective date of the plan is then pushed to the next month.

If there is no payment made on the premium for the plan after 90 days, the coverage will not go into effect (except in the first 30 days).

The first 90 days is the grace period that is given once the insurance coverage has been chosen.

If the open-enrollment period is missed, there is a chance to enroll during the 60-day special period depending on the event that made you miss the deadline.