Dear Liz: I am out of work and taking a pause on my job search. While I have plenty of savings in a diversified portfolio, enough to last many years if needed, my adjusted gross income is small (mostly capital gains from gradual sales of assets). I think I qualify for low-income assistance programs for utility bills and healthcare subsidies but I’m reluctant to apply. These programs are supposed to be for people in need and it doesn’t feel right for me to participate. Are there legal reasons why a high-wealth/low-income household can’t apply for assistance? Is it ethical?
Answer: If you meet the income requirements for a program — and there are no asset limits that would rule out your participation — then there’s no legal reason for you not to participate.
If the program’s resources are finite, though, you might well feel an ethical qualm about taking assistance that someone else needs more.
However, there’s no reason to pass up the tax credits that help reduce the cost of health insurance purchased through Affordable Care Act exchanges. The program was deliberately designed so that most Americans, not just those in the greatest need, could get help paying their health insurance premiums.
Dear Liz,
Thank you for reporting that ACA health insurance exchanges and tax credits were designed to help most Americans and not only those most in need. Like your original questioner, my low income qualifies me for many discounts I don’t feel right about taking because I have assets that are not considered and I don’t consider myself poor enough to need charity. But I could not afford to pay for 100% of my health insurance premiums without burning through those assets so fast I would have a hard time feeding and housing myself later. So I have used the exchange and taken the credits with reservations. It’s good to know I can do so with a clean conscience.