for starters under the new health reform law people with low incomes who have not qualified for medicaid in the past may now qualify. a little more than half of states will be expanding their medicaid programs to include individuals with incomes up to roughly $16 000 per year. if your state does not expand its medicaid program you will likely be eligible for significant financial help to pay for a health plan. people making as much as $46 000 per year are eligible for tax credits that will lower the cost of insurance. and if you make less than about $28 000 per year you'll also pay less each time you go for medical care. if with all this the lowest priced health plan available to you costs more than 8% of your income or you don't make enough money to file income taxes you will not be penalized with a tax penalty for not having health insurance. you'll have the chance starting october 1st -- just 5 days from now -- to log onto your state's health insurance marketplace to begin searching for your options. i urge you to do so. you may be quite pleasantly surprised by the new options available to people with limited incomes. good luck!
i am low income do i get penalized because i don't qualify for medicaid and cannot afford to buy insurance. i need it.