ROCKLAND, ME – Following a request from U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) and several of his colleagues last week, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) today announced a special enrollment period for individuals and families who did not have health coverage in 2014 and are subject to the fee or “shared responsibility payment” when they file their 2014 taxes in states which use the Federally-Facilitated Marketplace (FFM).

The announcement by CMS is directly in line with the request that Senator King and several of his colleagues made last week in a letter to Secretary of Health and Human Services Sylvia Burwell.

“It’s just common sense: one penalty – while tough enough to take – is a lot better than two,” Senator King said. “Helping millions avoid two fines for failing to get coverage in 2014 and for missing the 2015 deadline are the types of commonsense changes that will make a big difference for people and families across the country. Helping people to avoid a penalty and obtain quality health coverage is a win for everyone involved.”

Last Friday, Senator King, along with several of his colleagues, sent a letter to U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Sylvia Burwell asking the agency to grant individuals who were uninsured in 2014 and subject to the individual responsibility payment another opportunity to enroll in 2015 coverage under the Affordable Care Act.

This special enrollment period aligns with King’s request by allowing those individuals and families who were unaware or didn’t understand the implications of this new requirement to enroll in 2015 health insurance coverage through the FFM. It will begin on March 15, 2015 and end at 11:59 pm E.S.T. on April 30, 2015.  If a consumer enrolls in coverage before the 15th of the month, coverage will be effective on the first day of the following month.

Often, many people wait until the end of tax season in April to file their taxes and subsequently may not know until that time if they are subject to the individual responsibility penalty. Estimates indicate that in 2014 approximately two to four percent of taxpayers will pay the fee for choosing not to purchase health insurance they could have afforded. Many of these individuals may want to enroll in coverage to avoid the penalty again in 2015, only to find that open enrollment for 2015 coverage closed on February 15^th. The special enrollment period will allow these uninsured individuals an opportunity to learn about the financial help available under the law and another chance to enroll in the ACA’s health coverage.

Polling shows that many consumers still don’t know about the law’s key provisions designed to encourage enrollment. In fact, more than half of uninsured Americans are unaware of the financial help that is available to make Marketplace coverage more affordable (56 percent), less than half of the uninsured are aware of the individual responsibility provision (46 percent) and even less knew when the open enrollment period for 2015 coverage would close (17 percent).

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