Dear Addy: Marketplace Enrollment

Dear Addy,
I am self-employed and need health insurance. When can I enroll in the Marketplace plans and when will this coverage start?
~Self-Employed
 _____________________
Dear Self-Employed,
You can apply for health insurance on the Health Insurance Marketplace when open enrollment starts on October 1, 2013. Coverage under Marketplace plans starts as soon as January 1, 2014. Open enrollment ends on March 31, 2014. After March 31, 2014, you cannot enroll in Marketplace plans unless you have a qualifying event, like a change in legal marital status, a change in employment status, a birth, an adoption, or a death. If you have fewer than (50) full-time employees you can also refer your employees to the Marketplace plans.
~Addy
Have a question? Send us an email at: dearaddy@hemophiliafed.org. Your name will be changed in the response. 
________________________________
HFA frequently receives questions from the bleeding disorders community related to advocacy issues. The questions often impact the entire community. In an effort to reach the largest audience possible with our responses to these widely applicable questions, HFA developed “Dear Addy.” Questions submitted to this column are edited in order to protect privacy and should be considered educational only, not individual guidance.