While the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act repealed the individual mandate penalty as of January 1, 2019, the requirement for individuals and their dependents to have minimum essential health coverage unless exempt or pay a penalty still applies for 2018 returns. However, the IRS has stated that certain hardship exemptions can be claimed for 2018 without having to obtain a hardship exemption certificate from the health insurance Marketplace (Notice 2019-5).
A person is eligible for a hardship exemption for at least the month before, the month(s) during, and the month after the specific event or circumstance that creates the hardship if:
Rules for determining whether a person is active in a business activity for passive activity rule purposes. Unless the tests are met, passive loss limits apply.