Availability of short-term health insurance in Ohio

Yes. As of early 2026, at least seven insurers were offering short-term health insurance in Ohio.

Under Ohio rules, a policy that lasts no more than 364 days is exempt from various health insurance regulations.²

When the federal government stopped enforcing the stricter federal rules that had limited short-term policies to no more than four months, some insurers resumed selling short-term policies in Ohio with total durations of up to 364 days.

Bulletin 2018-05 clarifies that even non-renewable short-term health insurance in Ohio must comply with certain state requirements, including (but not limited to):²

• Internal and external reviews
• Provider network details must be disclosed to the consumer
• Certain care must be covered, including mammograms, autism spectrum disorder treatment, and newborn care.

While Ohio statute does not technically define short-term health insurance plans, the policies cannot exceed 364 days in duration, or else they would otherwise have to conform to all of the state’s rules that apply to regular individual market medical plans.

Short-term health insurance in Ohio can be purchased by residents who meet the underwriting guidelines used by insurers. This generally means applicants under 65 years old (some insurers put the age limit at 64 years) who are in fairly good health.

Short-term healthcare insurance plans typically include blanket exclusions for pre-existing conditions. Accordingly, they typically do not provide adequate coverage for someone who needs ongoing treatment for a chronic condition.

If you need to enroll in health insurance coverage in the Buckeye State outside of the annual open enrollment period for major medical coverage, the first step should be to check your eligibility for a special enrollment period. If you’re eligible for one, you may be able to enroll in an ACA-compliant major medical plan, even outside of open enrollment.

A variety of qualifying life events will trigger a special enrollment period and allow you to buy a plan through the health insurance exchange in Ohio. These plans are purchased on a month-to-month basis, so you can enroll in one (with a premium subsidy if you’re eligible) even if you’re only going to need it for a few months before another policy takes effect.

Despite the limitations of short-term coverage (e.g., exclusion of pre-existing conditions, sometimes no coverage for outpatient prescription drugs, etc.), there are times when a short-term health insurance policy might be the least costly and most realistic option to use:

• If you missed open enrollment for ACA-compliant coverage and do not have a qualifying event that would trigger a special enrollment period.
• If you are newly employed and have a waiting period until you can be covered by your new employer’s health insurance plan, short-term insurance may provide a much more affordable (but less comprehensive) stopgap than COBRA or an ACA-compliant plan. (Note that if your transition period is fairly short, COBRA can be used as a “free” alternative if you don’t end up needing medical care. This is because you have 60 days to sign up for COBRA. If you do so, even at the very end of that window, your coverage gets backdated to the first day you would have otherwise been uninsured. If you don’t end up needing medical care during that period, you can simply not sign up for COBRA. But note that this is a time-limited opportunity, so it won’t work if your gap in coverage is going to be more than 60 days.)
• If you will soon be eligible for Medicare.
• If you’re not eligible for Medicaid or a premium subsidy in the exchange, an ACA-compliant plan might be unaffordable.

People not eligible for premium subsidies include:

• Ohioans who earn too much money to be subsidy-eligible. As of 2026, this includes any enrollee whose household income is more than 400% of the federal poverty level.

People who are not lawfully present in the United States.