Special Enrollment Periods exist so that losing coverage or changing household does not leave you uninsured for most of a year. They are time-limited, they are documented, and the clock is shorter than people expect.
Changes in household
You may qualify if, in the past 60 days, you or anyone in your household:
- Got married. Pick a plan by the last day of the month and coverage can start the first day of the next.
- Had a baby, adopted a child or placed a child in foster care. Coverage can start the day of the event, even if you enroll up to 60 days afterwards.
- Got divorced or legally separated and lost health insurance. Divorce on its own, without losing coverage, does not qualify.
- Died, where that causes someone on the plan to lose their coverage.
Changes in residence
Moving to a new home in a new ZIP code or county can qualify, as can moving to the United States from a foreign country or a U.S. territory, moving to or from the place you attend school if you are a student, moving to or from the place you both live and work if you are a seasonal worker, and moving to or from a shelter or other transitional housing.
Moving only for medical treatment, or staying somewhere on holiday, does not qualify.
Loss of coverage
This is the most common trigger. You may qualify if you or anyone in your household lost qualifying health coverage in the past 60 days, or expects to lose it in the next 60 days. The forward-looking half is useful and widely unknown: you can arrange the replacement before the gap opens rather than after.
Medicaid and CHIP have a longer window. If you lost that coverage in the past 90 days, you may qualify.
Losing job-based coverage, including COBRA ending, can qualify. Choosing to drop coverage you hold as a dependent does not, on its own.
Expect to prove it
The Marketplace asks for documents confirming the event — a termination letter, a marriage certificate, proof of the new address. Coverage can be conditional until they are submitted, so gather them when you apply rather than waiting to be asked.
A Florida note
Hurricanes and other declared emergencies have produced their own enrollment relief in past years. That relief is specific to a declaration and a date range rather than a standing rule, so it has to be checked against the current year rather than assumed.
Also on this site
Dated coverage of this topic, where the figures move year to year:
Frequently asked questions
How long is an ACA Special Enrollment Period?
For most qualifying events, 60 days. Loss of Medicaid or CHIP coverage is the main exception, where you may qualify if the loss was in the past 90 days.
Can I enroll before I lose my coverage?
Yes, and it is usually better. You may qualify for a Special Enrollment Period if you expect to lose qualifying coverage in the next 60 days, which lets you arrange the replacement before the gap opens.
Does getting divorced qualify me?
Only if it caused you to lose health insurance. Divorce or legal separation without a loss of coverage does not create a Special Enrollment Period on its own.
Will I have to prove the life event?
Usually, yes. The Marketplace asks for documents confirming it, and your coverage can be conditional until you send them, so collect them at the point of applying.
Sources
- Special Enrollment Periods — HealthCare.gov · read 2026-10-19
- HealthCare.gov — Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services · read 2026-10-19
This guide explains published rules and figures, with the source for each one. It is not advice about your own situation.