To renew your Medicaid coverage, you must complete and submit your renewal form by the date listed on your form. 

You will lose your Medicaid coverage if you do not return your renewal form by the date requested.

Renewal Help at the NYC Health Department

The New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (NYC Health Department) helps connect New Yorkers to health insurance options by enrolling and renewing their coverage. Help is available in your language, and your information will be kept private.

Medicaid, Child Health Plus, and the Essential Plan are available in these programs. You will also need to continue renewing your coverage every 12 months.

You can enroll in Qualified Health Plans during the Open Enrollment Period, which begins each year on November 1. If you enroll by December 15, your coverage will start on January 1. 

Beginning February 1, 2025, you may only enroll in Qualified Health Plans during the Special Enrollment Period if you experience a qualifying life event. A qualifying life event can include the birth or adoption of a child, a marriage or divorce, a recent change to income, the loss of health insurance coverage.

General Help

You can get help from an enrollment counselor by phone or in person.

You can call the Office of Health Insurance to talk with a counselor. You can also request a call from a counselor.

For more information or to find an enrollment site near you, please visit nyc.gov/health/healthcoverage

You should have access to the following information when meeting with an in-person assistor:

• Name, address, birth date, and social security numbers of all applicants
• Immigration document numbers (if applicable)
• Employer and income information of all applicants (or any documentation showing unemployed status, if applicable)
• Health insurance policy numbers of any applicants that are already insured

The following persons can be included on your application:

• You and your spouse
• Your partner who lives with you
• Children you are caring for, who are living with you
• Anyone included on your federal income tax return

If you enroll in a health plan by the 15th of the month, your health insurance coverage will begin on the 1st of the following month.

If you have submitted a health insurance application through an in-person assistor, you should contact the assistor directly to find out status of your application.

If you have submitted a health insurance application on your own (or through an assistor whose name you cannot recall), you can get application status from the New York State of Health hotline.

As of 2019, consumers will not be required to pay the financial penalty fee for not having health insurance coverage.

However, if you were uninsured in 2018 and did not pay the penalty fee when filing taxes for the year, you may be advised to pay the penalty.

The penalty for not having health insurance coverage is calculated based on:

• Individual income
• Family size
• Number of months being uninsured

There are exemptions to the penalty. An in-person assistor can help figure out what the penalty may be and if you qualify for an exemption.