Question: What is the Individual Mandate of the Affordable Care Act?
Answer: The individual mandate of the Affordable Care Act requires most individuals to maintain minimum essential health insurance coverage or pay a penalty. For children, the penalty will be one-half the amount for adults. The penalty for 2014 is $95 per person or 1 percent of the household income, whichever is higher.
There are several exemptions to the individual mandate for those who qualifies. Exemption include
- religious objectors
- those who cannot afford coverage
- taxpayers with incomes less than 100% of the federal poverty level (FPL)
- Indian tribe members
- those who receive a hardship waiver
- individuals not lawfully present
- incarcerated individuals
- individuals without coverage for less than 3 months during the previous year.