 [ Symptoms ] both my husband and i have been out of work for years we own too much to get medicaid  how are we supposed to get health insurance so that we do not have to pay the 984 fine that is 984 per person the federal government told me we could use low cost clinics  but that is not health insurance so we will still be responsible for this penalty so what is the point of this law how can they make people who are out of work pay even more money that they do not have [ Disease ] the fine is either 95 per person285 for a family not 984 or 1 of your annual household income whichever is greater even if you have not qualified for medicaid before you might now the law expands the guidelines making it possible for a couple earning up to roughly 21 000 annually to get medicaid coverage of course many states are not expanding the program if you live in one that is not you will still want to shop on the marketplace for insurance because you will likely qualify for a substantial subsidy to lower the cost of coverage if medicaid is not an option and you can not find a plan that costs you less than 8 of your income you will not be penalized for not having insurance