A deductible is the amount you pay out of your own pocket in a plan year before the insurer begins paying its share. A $2,000 deductible means the first $2,000 of covered care is yours.

Two things make it less brutal than it sounds:

Preventive care is usually exempt. Annual checkups, screenings, vaccines and similar services are covered before the deductible under most plans.

Some services are copay-first. Many plans charge a flat copay for primary care or generic drugs from day one, without touching the deductible.

Why it matters in New York specifically: Medicaid and the Essential Plan have no deductible at all. When people move from the Essential Plan to a marketplace plan — as roughly 360,000 New Yorkers did in July 2026 — the premium is the visible change and the deductible is the one that hurts later. A bronze plan with the lowest premium usually carries the highest deductible.

Compare the deductible before the premium if you actually use care. If you don’t, the reverse.

Also called: annual deductible, plan deductible. Reference: Deductible on Wikipedia — general definition, not New York specifics.

More in Glossary of health coverage and billing terms

  • Sliding scale fee — A charge set by your income rather than a fixed price list. The standard at community health centers.
  • Good faith estimate — A written cost estimate uninsured and self-pay patients are entitled to before scheduled care.
  • Balance billing — When a provider bills you for the gap between its charge and what your plan paid.
  • Copay — A fixed amount you pay for a specific service — $25 for a visit, $10 for a generic drug.
  • Out-of-pocket maximum — The annual ceiling on what you pay for in-network covered care. After it, the plan pays 100%.

This page explains how the system works. It is not medical advice. More.