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Fixed Indemnity Insurance in Kentucky

Fixed indemnity pays a set cash amount per covered event or hospital day regardless of the bill, a supplement to health insurance rather than a replacement for it. Kentucky requires a cover-page disclosure that the plan is not a substitute for major medical coverage.

At a glance

Fixed indemnity is available in Kentucky as a supplemental, limited-benefit product, and Kentucky sets a specific disclosure requirement on it.
Kentucky mandates a cover-page disclosure through its Individual Non-Health Benefit Plan Checklist, warning that the plan is a supplement to health insurance and is not a substitute for major medical coverage.
It pays a fixed cash amount per covered event or day, regardless of your actual costs — it doesn't work like major medical.
It's not ACA minimum essential coverage and not a substitute for a comprehensive plan. Kentucky runs its own exchange, kynect, and has expanded Medicaid.

What Kentucky requires

Kentucky permits fixed indemnity as a supplemental, limited-benefit product. Unlike some states, Kentucky's administrative code does not set a fixed-indemnity minimum-benefit or format rule (806 KAR chapters 14 and 17 contain minimum standards for long-term care, short-term nursing home, and Medicare supplement coverage — not fixed indemnity). Instead, fixed indemnity is treated as a statutory excepted benefit carved out of the health-insurance rules (KRS 304.17A-008(2)(g)).

What Kentucky does require is a specific cover-page disclosure. Through the Kentucky Department of Insurance's Individual Non-Health Benefit Plan Checklist (a binding filing standard), the policy's cover page must carry this notice verbatim:

> THIS IS A SUPPLEMENT TO HEALTH INSURANCE AND IS NOT A SUBSTITUTE FOR MAJOR MEDICAL COVERAGE. LACK OF MAJOR MEDICAL COVERAGE (OR OTHER MINIMUM ESSENTIAL COVERAGE) MAY RESULT IN AN ADDITIONAL PAYMENT WITH YOUR TAXES.

Because fixed indemnity is an excepted benefit, it sits outside ACA rules. (At the federal level, a 2024 fixed-indemnity consumer-notice requirement was vacated by a court in December 2024, so it is not federally required; an earlier 2014 individual-market notice still applies.) Kentucky did not adopt the 2024 federal fixed-indemnity notice, so the state's own cover-page disclosure is the notice that applies here.

The core thing to understand is how it pays: fixed indemnity pays a predetermined cash amount when a covered event happens — no matter what your treatment actually costs. That's very different from major medical, which pays a share of your actual bills.

How fixed indemnity works in Kentucky

Fixed indemnity and related excepted benefits come in a few forms (described as coverage types, not specific products):

Hospital indemnity — pays a fixed amount per hospital stay or per day admitted.
Accident coverage — pays fixed amounts for specified injuries or accident-related care.
Specified-disease or critical-illness coverage — pays a fixed benefit if you're diagnosed with a covered condition.

Each pays a fixed cash benefit you can use toward bills, deductibles, or everyday costs during a covered event. Kentucky policies must carry the state's cover-page disclosure making clear the plan is a supplement, not a substitute for major medical — so read that notice and the policy closely. These products are designed to supplement real coverage, not replace it. As an independent, carrier-neutral brokerage, we don't push any single insurer — and we'll be clear that fixed indemnity works best alongside a comprehensive plan, not instead of one.

How to get coverage here

Fixed indemnity isn't sold through the health insurance marketplace, and it isn't tied to Open Enrollment — you can generally apply for it year-round, directly from an insurer or through a broker, subject to the product's terms and Kentucky's requirements.

For the comprehensive coverage that fixed indemnity is meant to supplement, Kentucky runs its own state-based exchange, kynect, where ACA plans have an annual Open Enrollment (typically each fall through early winter) and Special Enrollment Periods for qualifying life events like losing job-based coverage, moving, or having a baby. Kentucky has expanded Medicaid, so it's worth checking your eligibility there as well.

What it costs

We don't quote premiums here — prices depend on your situation — but the cost of fixed indemnity in Kentucky is driven by:

The benefit amounts you choose — higher fixed payouts (for example, a larger per-day hospital benefit) cost more.
The type of product — hospital indemnity, accident, or specified-disease coverage.
Your age — older applicants generally pay more.
Who's covered — an individual or a family.
Any riders or add-ons you select.

Because fixed indemnity pays fixed amounts rather than a share of your bills, the real question is how much cash it pays for the events you're most concerned about — and remember it's supplemental, so weigh it alongside the cost of the comprehensive coverage it's meant to support.

MG Matthew T. Giberti Licensed Expert · NPN 20698856 · Updated July 2026

Fixed indemnity insurance is a supplemental, limited-benefit (excepted-benefit) product. It pays fixed cash amounts for covered events regardless of your actual medical costs, is not major medical coverage, and is not minimum essential coverage under the Affordable Care Act. It does not cover the full range of essential health benefits and is not a substitute for a comprehensive health plan.

GetHealthPlans.com is operated by MTG Insurance Agency, an independent, carrier-neutral brokerage. We do not issue insurance and are not a government agency or the health insurance marketplace. Regulatory details on this page reflect Kentucky law and Kentucky Department of Insurance guidance as of the last-reviewed date and can change; confirm current terms and the specific product's approved form before you enroll.