Congressman Henry Cuellar reminds Starr County residents that, while the March 31st deadline for the healthcare open enrollment period has passed, it may not be too late to sign up. If you are uninsured, you may have a second chance at applying for subsidized health insurance.

“The open enrollment deadline is now behind us, but there are still some people that were not able to enroll for health insurance. If you missed the deadline, there are a few ways for you to get covered,” said Congressman Cuellar. “I encourage everyone that still has not received coverage to look at the options available and get health insurance.”

People that started applications on Healthcare.gov before the March 31 deadline have until April 15 to complete the process. All paper applications will be accepted until April 7th.

If a natural disaster, domestic abuse, a serious illness, mistakes by application counselors, errors by insurance companies, or something of the like prevented you from enrolling for health insurance, you may be eligible for a special enrollment period. Contact the Federal Call Center, at 1-800-318-2596, or your state marketplace and explain what went wrong. If your extension is approved, you have 60 days to enroll.

If you qualify for Medicaid, you can still enroll; there is no deadline. Eligibility for Medicaid varies from state to state and is based on income.

ACA does not stop buyers from enrolling into private insurance company plans. However, it may be difficult to find one that offers full coverage and options may be limited. It is also important to note that private plans do not come with government subsidies that help make it affordable for low or mid-level income individuals and families.