What are the deadlines for the ACA’s open enrollment period?

What was the deadline to enroll in 2026 ACA-compliant health insurance coverage in the individual market?

In most states, open enrollment for individual/family health coverage for 2026 ended on January 15, 2026, although it ended in December 2025 in Idaho, and there are several states where it continued until January 31, 2026. As of early February, open enrollment had ended everywhere except Washington DC, where it had been extended through February 4, 2026.¹

And although open enrollment has ended in Connecticut, people who are eligible for Connecticut's new state-funded subsidies have a special enrollment period that began February 1, 2026.²

How is the open enrollment schedule changing for 2027 coverage?

Starting in the fall of 2026, open enrollment will be shorter and will end on December 15 in many states. And all plans selected during open enrollment will take effect on January 1, as there will no longer be an option for a February 1 start date without a special enrollment period. State-run exchanges will have the option to extend their enrollment period later than December 15, but not later than December 31.³

What states had a January 15 open enrollment deadline for 2026 health insurance?

In 40 states, the deadline to enroll in individual/family health coverage for 2026 was January 15, 2026. Most of these states use HealthCare.gov and thus do not have the discretion to set their enrollment dates. But 10 of the 21 state-run exchange platforms used the same enrollment schedule:

• Alabama
• Alaska
• Arizona
• Arkansas
• Colorado (state-run exchange)
• Delaware
• Florida
• Georgia (state-run exchange)
• Hawaii
• Indiana
• Iowa
• Kansas
• Kentucky (state-run exchange)
• Louisiana
• Maine (state-run exchange)
• Maryland (state-run exchange)
• Michigan
• Minnesota (state-run exchange)
• Mississippi
• Missouri
• Montana
• Nebraska
• Nevada (state-run exchange)
• New Hampshire
• New Mexico (state-run exchange)
• North Carolina
• North Dakota
• Ohio
• Oklahoma
• Oregon
• South Carolina
• South Dakota
• Tennessee
• Texas
• Utah
• Vermont (state-run exchange)
• Washington (state-run exchange)
• West Virginia
• Wisconsin
• Wyoming
  

What states did not have a January 15 deadline to enroll in 2026 health insurance?

Fully state-run exchanges (there are 21 of them for the 2026 plan year) have some flexibility in terms of the enrollment deadlines they set. About half of these state-run exchanges used a November 1 - January 15 open enrollment schedule for 2026 coverage. However, 11 of the state-run exchanges had different enrollment windows. Here are the enrollment deadlines used by the rest of the state-run exchanges for 2026 coverage:

• California: January 31, 2026
• Connecticut: January 31, 2026⁵ (plus a special enrollment period starting February 1 for people eligible for the state's new state-funded subsidies).²
• District of Columbia: February 4, 2026 (last-minute deadline extension; normal deadline is January 31 in DC)¹
• Idaho: December 15, 2025⁶ (only state where open enrollment ended in December)
• Massachusetts: January 23⁷
• Illinios: January 31, 2026 (last-minute extension)⁸
• New Jersey: January 31⁹
• New York: January 31¹⁰
• Pennsylvania: January 31, 2026¹¹
• Rhode Island: January 31, 2026¹²
• Virginia: January 30, 2026¹³
  

Who can enroll in ACA-compliant health plans year-round?

Year-round enrollment is available for some populations and for some types of health coverage, without a need for a specific qualifying life event. This includes:

• American Indians and Alaska Natives
• Coverage under the Basic Health Programs in Minnesota, Oregon, and DC,¹⁴ and the BHP-like program in New York.
• Coverage under the ConnectorCare program in Massachusetts, for people who are newly eligible or who haven't enrolled before¹⁵
• Coverage under Connecticut's Covered Connecticut program¹⁶
• Applicants who are eligible for Medicaid or CHIP can enroll year-round.¹⁷