Coverage for the in between.

When it genuinely makes sense

Short term plans exist for specific situations, and in those situations they can be a smart, affordable bridge.

• You are between jobs and your new benefits start in a few weeks.
• You retired before 65 and need to reach Medicare eligibility.
• You missed open enrollment, do not have a qualifying life event, and need something until the next window.
• You are waiting out a waiting period on an employer plan.

What it does not do

This is the part that gets glossed over elsewhere, so we will say it plainly. Short term plans are not ACA compliant. That means they can decline you or exclude coverage based on pre existing conditions, and they generally do not cover the essential health benefits that marketplace plans must include, such as maternity care, mental health services or prescription coverage. They are a bridge, not a replacement for comprehensive insurance.

Always compare it against the alternatives

Before recommending short term coverage, we check two things. First, whether losing your previous coverage triggers a special enrollment period, which would let you buy a full marketplace plan with subsidies. Second, how the short term premium compares to COBRA and to a subsidized marketplace plan. Quite often one of those is the better deal, and we would rather tell you that than sell you the wrong product. Duration limits and availability also vary by state and change with federal rules, so we confirm what is actually offered where you live.