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Which States Guarantee Health Insurance Coverage?

Having health insurance is a major concern for many Americans. Unfortunately, people with chronic health problems or pre-existing conditions may not be able to find a private insurance company willing to cover them. Some states have guaranteed health insurance for residents. These are not free and take the form of what are called high-risk pools, guaranteed state health insurance for the uninsurable. Each state's health pool has different rules and restrictions, and not all states offer them.

  1. Wyoming

    • The Wyoming Health Insurance Pool (WHIP) covers individuals who have involuntarily lost their health insurance, have used up their COBRA benefits and/or have met the lifetime maximum on their current health insurance. If you are currently being treated for a condition listed on the state's presumptive conditions list, you may be eligible for the plan without submitting proof of insurance rejection by a health insurance company. These conditions include Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, HIV, AIDS, cerebral palsy, myocardial infarctions and sickle cell anemia. You may also qualify if you are under 65, cannot get group coverage and are on Medicare disability. WHIP allows residents to choose from three plans: the Brown, the Gold and a catastrophic plan. Brown has a higher calendar-year deductible and higher maximum out-of pocket expenses than Gold, but lower monthly premiums.

    Arkansas

    • The Arkansas Comprehensive Health Insurance Pool (CHIP) allows people on the plan to choose calendar-year deductibles in the amount of $1,000, $1,250, $5,000 or $10,000. To be eligible, you must have already had health insurance for an aggregate of 18 months without any gaps of 63 or more days, but not currently be covered or eligible to be covered by Medicare, Medicaid or a group health plan. You also need to have been a resident of Arkansas for a minimum of 90 days, or a minimum of 30 days if you moved from a state where you had health insurance under another high-risk pool. Applicants have to provide proof of rejection from health insurance companies. You are ineligible if you previously had CHIP and had it lapse because you did not pay the premiums.

    Iowa

    • According to its official website, the Health Insurance Plan of Iowa (HIPIOWA), was formed by the state legislature to give health insurance "to all residents of the state who are unable to obtain individual health insurance." Residents who want to apply for HIPIOWA need to fill out an official application and send it to the state. Certain sections of the application need to be filled out and signed by licensed insurance agents before being submitted. Insurance agents may charge for this service, but the HIPIOWA program will cover $200 in fees to insurance agents for the purposes of the application. Agents need to supply W-9 tax forms and copies of their insurance agent license before receiving funds for their assistance. In order to qualify for HIPIOWA, you must be a legal resident of Iowa and have a notice of health insurance rejection you've received within the past nine months. You must also have a serious medical condition such as AIDS, kidney failure requiring dialysis, paraplegia or quadriplegia, metastatic cancer, lupus or leukemia in order to qualify.

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