Update from Covered California!
The California individual mandate generally requires that, beginning 2020, all California residents maintain minimum essential health coverage (MEC) for each month of the year. MEC includes employer sponsored insurance, individual market coverage purchased through Covered California or directly from issuers, Medicare Parts A and C, and most Medi-Cal coverage. Those who do not meet this requirement must pay a penalty on their state income tax return unless they qualify for an exemption.
For 2021, the amount of the penalty for not having qualifying health insurance has increased. As a reminder, there are two methods of calculating the penalty, and a household will pay whichever calculation yields the larger penalty:
A flat amount based on the number of people in the household - $800 per adult 18 years or older and $400 per dependent child for no coverage for an entire year; up to an annual max of $2,400.
A percentage of the household income - 2.5% of all gross household income over the tax filing threshold.
The California Franchise Tax Board (FTB) launched the individual mandate penalty estimator in 2020 to help consumers calculate the penalty they may owe if they go without qualifying health coverage.
