What is a special enrollment period

What exactly is special enrollment and what
makes it so special? That's what I'm here to answer today. Hi, I'm Joshua and I'm a broker at Alexander
and Haberman. Today I'm here to talk to you about MNsure. First things first, then.

What is a special enrollment period? A special enrollment period is period when
an individual can enroll in a QHP (qualified health plan) for the first time or make changes
to a health plan that they already have. As you probably know, every year there's an
annual open enrollment period. That open enrollment period normally lasts
a set number of weeks. And it starts November first.

During this time, anyone can enroll in a plan
and ordinarily their plan will begin January 1st. Special enrollment periods, triggered by the
qualifying life events, are what allow you to buy a plan outside of this annual enrollment
period each fall. In order to take advantage of this period,
you need to have a qualifying life event. Each of these are examples of special enrollment
periods.

As you can see, there's quite a lot of them. In future videos, we'll go into details on
the particulars of each of these situations. For this video, what I want you to understand
is that you have a 60-day window to take advantage of the qualifying life event. If you are already enrolled in a qualified
health plan through MNsure and you experience one of these life events, all you need to
do is call MNsure to report the life event in order to be able to make the change.

If you're new to MNsure the process is much
the way it would be during the annual enrollment period. Decide whether you want to navigate this process
on your own or with the help of one of MNsure's assisters. There's thousands of them across the state
and you can find them easily on the website. Once you've decided how you want to go about
the process, it's just a matter of reviewing your plan options, creating an account, submitting
an application, and selecting your plan.

One of the great things about applying with
MNsure is your determination for eligibility is instantaneous in most cases. And you'll immediately know whether you qualify
for one of the public programs like MinnesotaCare or Medical Assistance or if you're eligible
for advanced premium tax credits for a qualified health plan. If you do become eligible for one of the public
programs, you will receive additional information in the mail from the Department of Human Services. If, on the other hand, you're eligible for
a qualified health plan, you can select that plan and enroll online.

This is where things change from what you
would normally do during the open enrollment period. Because we're in a special enrollment period,
there are some additional steps you need to take. And the first of these is calling MNsure in
order to report your qualifying life event. During your call to MNsure to report your
qualifying life event, they will describe for you the type of additional documentation
that will be needed in order to validate your enrollment.

They'll also tell you how long you have to
provide this information. And how to submit that information. It is very important that follow these guidelines
and instructions from MNsure in order to complete your enrollment. You will also get a written confirmation of
the special enrollment period documentation that is needed.

So don't worry if you can't remember everything
when they tell it to you on the phone. Once MNsure gets your documentations, they'll
review those. And if everything is complete and accurate,
they will forward your enrollment to the carrier and they will send you a notification of your
enrollment status. If everything is not in order, you'll also
get a confirmation from MNsure.

In this case, telling you what is missing
and how to rectify that so you can continue to move forward with the coverage. If you would like any help with any of these
steps along the way, it's important to know that there are many resources for you. From the MNsure Call Center, to the many assisters,
navigators, and brokers that are out there to help you. One thing that we strongly recommend is that
you seek this assistance early in the process before there are potential errors that need
to be corrected.

It's much easier to do things right the first
time than to correct them..