Guides and answers
Do you pay a health insurance broker?
No, and here is exactly why. How brokers are paid, and why your price is the same either way.
Read the guide →Health insurance when you are self-employed
Coverage and income-based subsidies for 1099 earners, freelancers and contractors.
Read the guide →Health insurance between jobs
Your options after a job loss, ranked, from a marketplace plan to COBRA to a spouse's plan.
Read the guide →Missed Open Enrollment?
When a qualifying life event still lets you enroll, and how the 60-day window works.
Read the guide →The 2027 ACA subsidy cliff
The 2027 income limits by household size, and what crossing the line actually costs.
Read the guide →Free subsidy calculator
Estimate your premium tax credit before you shop, in about a minute.
Read the guide →Small business health insurance in Tampa
Group and owner coverage options for small Tampa Bay employers.
Read the guide →Coverage when it is just you
Health insurance options for a business owner with no employees.
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Life, dental and business coverage
Life insurance, explained
Term, final expense, no exam and permanent coverage compared, plus how much a family needs.
Read the guide →Final expense insurance
Small whole life policies that cover a funeral and final bills, and how approval works.
Read the guide →No exam life insurance
How insurers approve you without a needle, and when an exam is the better deal.
Read the guide →Term life for families
Picking a term and an amount, and covering a mortgage the smart way.
Read the guide →Living benefits
Life insurance you can use early after a heart attack, cancer or chronic illness.
Read the guide →Children's life insurance
An honest look at child policies versus a child rider on your own term policy.
Read the guide →Accidental death insurance
What it pays for, who it suits, and why it should not be your only policy.
Read the guide →Dental and vision insurance
Plans you can buy on your own, waiting periods, and how to enroll online.
Read the guide →Self funded plans for business owners
PPO coverage for owners with an LLC or EIN, who qualifies, and the tradeoffs.
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2027 changes and enrollment
Obamacare 2027 changes: what is different this year
About 15% higher premiums, the subsidy cliff, no repayment cap, HSA eligible bronze, a $12,000 out-of-pocket cap and exits.
Read the guide →Health insurance open enrollment 2027 dates
2027 open enrollment runs Nov 1, 2026 to Jan 15, 2027 on HealthCare.gov.
Read the guide →Cigna is leaving the ACA marketplace for 2027. Here is what actually happens next.
Cigna, Baylor Scott & White and CareSource are leaving ACA marketplaces for 2027, and about 650,000 people must pick a new plan.
Read the guide →What happens if you underestimate your income for Obamacare?
Underestimate your income for Obamacare and you repay the extra tax credit on Form 8962.
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Choosing the right plan
Bronze vs silver vs gold health plans: which should you pick?
What each pays, who gets extra silver savings, and why gold costs less than silver in 18 of 22 counties I checked.
Read the guide →HMO vs PPO vs EPO (and POS): which is better?
Which network type is better depends on your doctors and budget.
Read the guide →Deductible vs out of pocket maximum: what you actually pay
Deductible vs out of pocket maximum, plus copays and coinsurance, explained with a worked example and the 2026 and 2027 federal out of...
Read the guide →What is a good deductible for health insurance?
What is a good deductible for health insurance?
Read the guide →What is an HSA plan and how does it work?
2026 and 2027 IRS limits, the new rule making bronze and catastrophic plans HSA eligible, and why it matters if you are self employed.
Read the guide →Marketplace vs private health insurance: what is the real difference?
On and off exchange ACA plans, why subsidies only work on the marketplace, and the honest limits of short term plans.
Read the guide →How to check if your doctor is in network (and prove it later)
Search the right directory, call the office and the insurer, keep proof, and know your No Surprises Act rights.
Read the guide →How to lower your health insurance premium: 9 honest ways
The right income estimate, gold vs silver, bronze with an HSA, network type, and yearly shopping.
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Life changes
How to add a spouse to health insurance after marriage
The 60 day marketplace window, 30 day job plan window, what two incomes do to your subsidy.
Read the guide →Health insurance after divorce: your options and the deadlines that matter
COBRA for up to 36 months, a 60 day marketplace window if you lose coverage, subsidies on your own income, and the kids.
Read the guide →Health insurance for your newborn: how to add your baby, and what it costs
60 days on the marketplace with coverage back to birth, at least 30 days on an employer plan, and what a child adds to cost.
Read the guide →Turning 26? How to get your own health insurance
Turning 26 and aging off a parent's plan?
Read the guide →Retiring before 65? How to bridge your health insurance
Retiring before 65?
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Coverage for your line of work
Health insurance for gig workers and rideshare drivers
Driving for Uber, Lyft or DoorDash?
Read the guide →Health insurance for real estate agents who work on commission
Real estate agents are usually 1099 contractors with no brokerage plan.
Read the guide →Health insurance for contractors and construction workers
Marketplace plans, subsidies based on net profit, workers comp gaps, and covering a crew.
Read the guide →Health insurance for truck drivers and owner operators
Company plans vs your own, coverage on the road, how per diem can lower your premium, and what to avoid.
Read the guide →Health insurance for travel nurses: agency plan or your own?
Agency plans vs your own marketplace plan, how your tax home sets your state, and how to stay covered between contracts.
Read the guide →Health insurance for solo attorneys: bar plans vs the marketplace
How bar association plans really work, marketplace options at a high income, the premium deduction, and covering staff.
Read the guide →Health insurance for doctors and dentists starting a private practice
Leaving the hospital plan, why subsidies rarely apply, group vs individual, and HRAs for staff.
Read the guide →What is an ICHRA? The individual coverage HRA, now called a CHOICE Arrangement
An ICHRA is an employer allowance for individual health insurance.
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Florida, Texas and Tampa
Health insurance in Tampa: plans, prices and local help
Real Hillsborough and Pinellas plan counts and prices, what locals pay after subsidies, hospital networks, and free local help.
Read the guide →The cheapest health insurance in Florida, honestly
The cheapest health insurance in Florida depends on income.
Read the guide →How much is health insurance per month in Florida?
Florida health insurance costs per month by age, county and family size, from real marketplace data, plus what you pay after the subsidy...
Read the guide →How much is health insurance per month in Texas?
What Texas health insurance costs per month by county, age and family size, why gold often beats silver there, and what you pay after the...
Read the guide →Your Tampa Bay health insurance broker
Local independent health insurance broker serving Tampa, Bradenton, Sarasota, St.
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Find a broker near you
Find a broker in your state
Every state I serve, each with its own marketplace, 2027 changes and enrollment dates.
Read the guide →Health insurance plans by county
How carriers and pricing change from one county to the next.
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