A Qualified Health Plan (QHP) is defined as:
Select an option to reveal the answer and the full 3-part explanation — free, no signup.
Answer & full 3-part explanation (select an option above, or peek)
Why A is correct
A Qualified Health Plan is a health plan that has been certified by an American Health Benefit Exchange, in California, Covered California, to be offered on the exchange. To obtain certification, a plan must cover the essential health benefits, comply with the guaranteed issue and rating rules, meet cost-sharing and transparency standards, and be offered by a licensed, qualified carrier. QHP status is what makes a plan eligible for premium tax credits when it is purchased through the exchange. Plans that fail certification, limited-benefit products, and non-exchange plans are not QHPs even though some may still be lawful coverage.
Why the other options are wrong
- B) Employer-sponsored plans are not automatically QHPs. QHP certification is specific to exchange participation, EHB coverage, and the ACA's market rules; many employer plans are never certified as QHPs.
- C) Specified-disease limited policies do not meet the EHB requirement and are not certified as QHPs on an exchange. They are limited supplemental products.
- D) Plans sold outside the exchange are not QHPs, although they must still comply with core federal market rules such as guaranteed issue and the preexisting condition ban.
Memory hook
QHP = the exchange's certified, EHB-complete seal of approval that unlocks tax credits.