Health Plan Waiting Periods

The Affordable Care Act provides that a group health plan or health insurance issuer offering group health insurance coverage cannot have a waiting period of more than 90 days. The IRS, the Department of Labor, and the Department of Health and Human Services have jointly issued proposed regulations on waiting periods. The waiting-period rule does not mean that an employer must offer health coverage (small employers with fewer than 50 full-time employees are exempt from the employer mandate, which starts in 2014). The waiting-period rule applies only to employers offering health coverage.

Check with your employer to learn about any conditions that apply to you if there is a health plan in your company.

Source: REG-122706-12