Marketplace health insurance is the online service established under the Affordable Care Act where people can shop for and buy health insurance from private insurance companies. Each year it has an open enrollment period during which time people can purchase their initial policy or switch policies. This year the open enrollment period is from November 1st until January 15, 2025 and scammers are already busy contacting people by phone, email, text message, social media and advertisements posing as legitimate insurance companies. Some of the phony ads use deepfake technology to make it appear that a celebrity has endorsed their plan. The scammers often pose as either insurance companies or Marketplace officials demanding payments by cash or cryptocurrencies which is a red flag for a scam.
TIPS
So how do you safely pick an initial policy or change your policy during the open enrollment period? The best way to do so is to not respond to any of the phone calls, emails, text messages, social media or ads that you may encounter because you can never be sure if they are legitimate. Instead just to directly to the official Marketplace health insurance website at https://www.healthcare.gov/ or call them at 1-800-318-2596 to get all the information you need to make an informed choice. You can also communicate with local Navigators or local insurance agents through the Marketplace’s online directory here https://www.healthcare.gov/find-local-help/
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