Frequently Asked Questions

How do I get health insurance?
The rules governing insurance companies varies from state-to-state, so the way to get coverage will be different depending upon where you live. And, depending on your income, your age, and your health status, you may be eligible for assistance paying for your health insurance premium. The place to start in order to learn more about the options in your area and what assistance you may be eligible for is www.ahirc.org – a free online tool anyone can use but that’s specifically designed for artists.

What is AHIRC?
The Actors’ Fund – an advocacy organization representing actors in film, television, and theatre – created an online tool that helps actors find out about health insurance and health care options available in their local area. Through a partnership with LINC, this tool is now available to anyone, but is particularly focused on the unique needs of artists of all disciplines. From this single site, artists can find out about free or reduced cost health services, publicly and privately sponsored health care and insurance programs, and other health-related information that is broken down according to the city or state they’re from.

Why is having health insurance important?
Access to health insurance is often cited as the best way to ensure healthier outcomes for everyone. According to one survey, almost half of uninsured individuals will not seek care when they have a medical problem, compared to just 15% of insured individuals. Because uninsured patients lack routine care, their chronic conditions are often poorly managed, increasing the likelihood of serious, acute complications. Once hospitalized, they receive treatment for acute needs but probably don’t receive appropriate follow-up care, resulting in worse health outcomes over the long term.

What are the unique health concerns of artists?
Visual artists are often exposed to dangerous chemicals; dancers work their bodies so strenuously that they often have special needs for physical therapy; and actors and singers may sustain injuries during the normal course of their work. Physical dangers can be made worse because of the bad ventilation, bad floors, and other physical hazards that can be routine in the inadequate and under-maintained spaces in which many artists must work.

How much does health insurance cost?
The cost of insurance varies a great deal depending on several factors including age, income, geography, health status, and size of your family. Another important factor is whether or not you are buying a plan as an individual or part of a group. For example, if you are self-employed, you will most likely be purchasing a plan as an individual. If you work for someone else and they offer access to an insurance plan, you’ll be purchasing group coverage. Individual coverage for a healthy, single male between 23 – 39 (typically the lowest cost client) can range between $1,200 and $4,000 a month. Employer-sponsored group coverage for that same individual will be a third of the cost because the employer will be paying roughly two-thirds of the premium on the employee’s behalf.

What are my options?
The best place to start is to learn about your options is www.ahirc.org where you’ll find free information designed specifically for artists around the country. Each state and most major cities also have resources available to consumers who need guidance on how to obtain and afford health insurance and gain access to public and private health services.

Does LINC provide financial support for artists to obtain health insurance?
LINC provides financial support and technical assistance to artist service organizations, but not to individual artists.

Are artists more likely to be uninsured than others?
Artists as a segment of the population are just as likely to be uninsured as anyone else, but not more so. However, research shows that artists who have insurance pay more for it since they are more likely to be self-employed and paying for higher-cost individual coverage.

Why is it difficult for some artists to obtain health insurance?
70% of Americans with lower-cost group insurance coverage obtain it through their employer, but most artists do not follow a typical employment pattern. According to U.S. Census data, of those who listed “artist” as their primary job, 40% are self-employed; 57% earn zero income from their work, compared to only 12% of artists who earn 100% of their income from their art.

How does the rising cost of healthcare in the U.S. affect artists?
The majority of Americans with insurance obtain it through their employer. As costs go up, more and more employers are no longer offering group coverage to employees. The smaller the employer, the more likely they are to drop coverage. Most artists who do obtain coverage from an employer work for small, community-based organizations – typically non-profit – and are at high-risk of their employer dropping coverage. For those artists obtaining coverage on the individual market, rising costs are passed directly on to them rather than a portion being absorbed by an employer.

Is anything being done to solve the healthcare crisis in the U.S.?
Wholesale healthcare reform was attempted during the first term of President Clinton in 1994. In spite of rising costs and an increasing number of uninsured Americans, the attempt failed. In the years since, attempts have been made at incremental reforms to the system at the state level with mixed results. In 2006, the State of Massachusetts made a major breakthrough with it’s reform plan, and several states, including California, tried to implement a similar model. However, no other states made significant progress and in California, the reform process collapsed completely.

The already fragile healthcare system has become even more so since 1994 and has again become a major issue in the presidential campaign. No matter which candidate wins, comprehensive health care reform will be a premier issue, although the types of reform ideas offer will depend greatly on who wins the presidency and which party is in control of Congress. The next two years marks the next best chance for the health care system to be saved from collapse and bring more affordable coverage to the nearly 46 million Americans without coverage.

What do I need to know about political candidates’ approaches to healthcare in the U.S. before I vote in November?
The candidates’ ideas about how to fix the healthcare system are dramatically different from one another. In order to determine which candidate’s plan will offer the most to you, you need to first understand your own health care and insurance needs. For example, if you are between 40 and 50 years of age, have a chronic illness, a family, are self-employed, have a modest income and live outside of an urban area, you will most likely find one candidate’s plan offers you more than the other. And vice-versa, if you’re healthy, between 23 – 39 years of age, single, and you work for an employer that offers group coverage, you will probably support the other candidate.

Once you understand your own situation, you then need to research what the candidates are offering. To do so, you can visit their campaign websites or visit some of the sites we’ve provided below. One caveat: LINC does not necessarily endorse the positions of the organizations listed. We have tried to provide a range of opinions on this topic.

How can I become involved in advocacy, and who is already involved?
LINC is a non-partisan organization and does not engage in advocacy, but there are a variety of arts-related and non-arts organizations that are preparing to participate in the debate over healthcare reform. Many of these organizations invite the participation of artists/citizens like you. A list of organizations is provided below.

What organizations does LINC support in the area of health insurance?
LINC has provided financial support and technical assistance to artist service organizations in Seattle, Boston, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Cleveland, and New York. To read more about the specifics of our health insurance related work in these areas, visit the health insurance section of the LINC website.