The 2019 Federal Poverty Guidelines

The 2019 Federal Poverty Guidelines (for 2020 Cost assistance and 2019 Medicaid/CHIP)

Below are the 2019 Federal Poverty Guidelines that went into effect in early 2019 (the ones you use for Medicaid/CHIP in 2019 and for 2020 marketplace cost assistance).

These guidelines are the key to all cost assistance under the Affordable Care Act, specifically these guidelines are used for:

• Medicaid/CHIP between Jan 2019 – Jan 2020.
• 2020 marketplace cost assistance on all marketplace health plans held in 2020 and purchased during open enrollment for 2020 (which runs from Thursday, November 1, 2019, to Saturday, December 15, 2019, and which uses the 2019 levels).
• For special enrollment in 2020.
• For ACA taxes for the 2020 calendar year filed in 2021.

NOTE: Our federal poverty guideline list has the 100% poverty level, 138% Medicaid expansion threshold, the 250% CSR subsidy threshold, and the 400% premium tax credit thresholds so you can at a glance see what assistance you qualify for. Please note that for Medicaid Expansion if you make under 138% you qualify, for CSR it is between 100% – 250%, and for tax credits it is between 100% and 400%. See details on subsidies under the ACA.

TIP: For mobile and smaller screen sizes, drag the table below to scroll and see the different poverty levels.

NOTE: Alaska and Hawaii use different guidelines (see this link to guidelines as published on HHS.Gov).

How to calculate a percentage of the Federal Poverty Level: Medicaid uses the 138% of the Federal Poverty level to determine assistance. Until we update this, take the guideline dollar amount below, multiply by 1.38, and then round up. So $12,490 x 1.38 = $17,236.20. Thus, $17,237 is 138% of the Federal Poverty Level threshold for 2019 Medicaid and CHIP. The methodology is the same for all FPL percentages. We have made the calculations for you above, but it still helps to know the methodology.

Medicaid and CHIP: You can sign up for Medicaid and CHIP 365 days a year. You may qualify for free or low-cost care for Medicaid based on income and family size if you make 138% of the poverty level or, for example, $17236.20 individual or $35,535 for a family of four in 2019. Specifics may differ by state.

Healthcare Cost Assistance: You may qualify for marketplace cost assistance based on income and family size each year if you make between 100% – 400% of the federal poverty level. For 2020 assistance you’ll use the 2019 poverty levels. Thus, if you make between $12,490 – $49,960 as an individual or $25,750 – $103,000 in 2020, you’ll qualify for cost assistance. Please note marketplace cost assistance can be taken in advance based on income projects, but is adjusted for actual income at tax time.