After you fill out an application with the Health Insurance Marketplace and provide household and income information, you’ll find out if you qualify for a premium tax credit that lowers your monthly health insurance bill.

You’ll also find out if, in addition, your income qualifies you for extra savings known as “cost-sharing reductions.” If it does, you can save money a second way: By paying less out of your own pocket each time you get medical services. This can really reduce your total health care costs for the year.

• While a Silver plan may have a monthly premium that’s higher than a Bronze plan’s, be sure to consider the total cost of your medical care. Your total costs include not just monthly premiums but the payments you make when you get care.
• If you have a Silver plan and qualify for extra savings, the deductible can be thousands of dollars less than a typical Bronze plan’s. So you may end up spending less on health care overall if you enroll in a Silver plan.

Do you qualify for extra savings on out-of-pocket costs?

Use this quick tool to see if your 2016 income estimate falls in the range for cost-sharing reductions.

• If it does fall in the range, the amount you’ll save on out-of-pocket costs depends on your specific income estimate. The lower your income within the range, the more you’ll save.
• You’ll find out exactly how much you’ll save only after you apply and shop for Silver plans in the Health Insurance Marketplace.

How out-of-pocket savings work

If you qualify for savings on out-of-pocket costs and enroll in Silver plan:

• You’ll have a lower deductible. This means the insurance plan starts to pay its share of your medical costs sooner. For example, if a particular Silver plan has a $750 deductible, you have to pay the first $750 of medical care yourself before the insurance company pays anything (other than free preventive services). But if you qualify for extra savings your deductible for a Silver plan could be $300 or $500, depending on your income.
• You’ll have lower copayments or coinsurance. These are the payments you make each time you get care – like $30 for a doctor visit. If a Silver plan’s copayment is $30 for a doctor’s visit, if you enroll in the plan and qualify for extra savings, you may pay $20 or $15 instead.
• You’ll have a lower “out-of-pocket maximum.” This means the total amount you’d have to pay in a year if you used a lot of care, like if you got seriously sick or had an accident, will be lower. Instead of $5,000, your out-of-pocket maximum for a particular Silver plan could be $3,000.

Important: The above are just examples to illustrate how extra savings work. Plans in all categories have a wide range of deductibles, copayments/coinsurance, and out-of-pocket maximums. You'll know exactly how much you save on out-of-pocket costs only when you shop for Silver plans in the Marketplace.

American Indians and Alaska Natives and cost-sharing reductions

Learn about special cost-sharing reduction rules for American Indians and Alaska Natives.

More answers: Savings on out-of-pocket costs