Bridge coverage that can start as soon as tomorrow — for the gap between jobs, plans, or enrollment periods.
Not a government marketplace. Health Enrollment Center is operated by Sprinter Insurance Agency LLC.
Texas has the largest ACA marketplace in the country — roughly 3.9 million people selected a plan in the most recent Open Enrollment, and about 93% of them qualified for a premium tax credit. If you've been putting off coverage because you assume it's unaffordable, that number is worth a second look: after subsidies, a large share of Texans pay little or nothing for a Silver plan.
Short-term medical plans are designed to cover a temporary gap: you're between jobs, waiting for a new employer plan to begin, missed Open Enrollment, or aging off a parent's policy mid-year. They can typically be issued in a day and cost far less than COBRA or an unsubsidized marketplace plan.
The trade-off matters, and we'll always say it plainly: short-term plans are not ACA-compliant. They do not have to cover pre-existing conditions, and they usually exclude maternity and some prescriptions. They are not minimum essential coverage. For a healthy person who needs 60–90 days of protection against a major accident or hospitalization, they can be a smart, cheap bridge. For someone managing an ongoing condition, an ACA plan is almost always the better call — and if you qualify for a Special Enrollment Period, you may not need a short-term plan at all.
How long a short-term plan can last, and whether it can be sold at all, is decided state by state. Federal rules set an outside limit, though federal enforcement of that limit has been suspended since August 2025 pending new rulemaking, and several states set their own shorter caps or bar these plans entirely. A Texas-licensed agent will tell you what is actually sold here, for how long, and whether a marketplace plan through a Special Enrollment Period would serve you better.
Texas does not run its own exchange — marketplace plans here are sold through the federal marketplace, HealthCare.gov. In practice that means the enrollment windows, the eligibility rules and the appeals process are the federal ones, and the plan you buy through a licensed agent is the identical plan at the identical price you would find on HealthCare.gov yourself. Texas uses the federal marketplace, HealthCare.gov.
Texas has not expanded Medicaid, so for most adults here a short-term plan is really being compared against a subsidized marketplace plan rather than against Medicaid. If your coverage gap came from a qualifying life event, a Special Enrollment Period may be open to you now — and because credits start at 100% of the federal poverty level, an ACA plan can be closer in price than you'd expect while still covering the pre-existing conditions a short-term plan excludes. Texas has not expanded Medicaid, which creates a coverage gap for some very low-income adults — but it also means marketplace subsidies are especially important here, and many Texans who assume they can't afford coverage actually qualify for a large premium tax credit.
The carriers writing individual business in Texas include Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas, UnitedHealthcare, Aetna CVS Health, Cigna, Ambetter from Superior HealthPlan and others. Networks and pricing are set county by county rather than statewide, so the same carrier can be the best value in one metro and the wrong choice an hour away. We quote Houston, Dallas–Fort Worth, San Antonio and Austin — and every county in between.
Don't see yours? Call a licensed agent — most answers take under two minutes.
Yes. We help Texas residents compare short-term medical options against the alternatives so you can see the real trade-offs before you enroll.
For most Texans the cheapest real coverage is a subsidized ACA marketplace plan — after the premium tax credit, many qualify for a Silver plan at little or no monthly cost after the credit, while others pay full price. The lowest sticker-price option is usually a Bronze plan, but if your income qualifies you for cost-sharing reductions, a Silver plan is often the better value because it lowers your deductible too. We compare both for your specific ZIP and income.
Through HealthCare.gov, the federal marketplace — Texas does not run its own exchange. You can enroll in those same plans through a licensed agent at no extra cost, which also lets you see private off-marketplace plans that HealthCare.gov does not list.
The carriers writing individual business in Texas include Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas, UnitedHealthcare, Aetna CVS Health, Cigna, Ambetter from Superior HealthPlan and others. Which of them is actually competitive depends on your county rather than the state — the lineup and the networks in Houston are not the lineup in Austin. We are independent and compare across all of them rather than steering you to one company.
Start with your ZIP. Two quick questions, then a licensed agent brings you the plans you actually qualify for — no cost, no obligation.