When do my health benefits end?
Last updated: September 14, 2026
Applies to: US W-2 Employees enrolled in health benefits through Ascen. Eligibility depends on your assignment, so not every worker is offered benefits — if you have never seen a benefits enrollment step, this does not apply to you.
Summary: Your coverage is tied to your employment, not to a fixed twelve months. It runs while you are actively employed and ends when your employment ends — it does not continue to the end of the plan year. Separately, while you are still employed, you generally cannot drop coverage mid-year unless you have a qualifying life event.
Coverage follows your employment
Eligibility for benefits depends on having an active employment status with Ascen. When your employment concludes, your coverage is no longer active beyond that point.
This is the part that surprises people: enrolling does not buy you a year of cover. If you enrolled in July and your employment ends in October, your coverage ends then — it does not run on to the following July.
Note that in staffing, one assignment finishing is not always the same as your employment ending. If you remain available for further assignments you may still be employed. If you are not sure which applies to you, ask before you make plans that depend on being covered.
You generally cannot cancel mid-year on request
While you are employed and enrolled, you cannot simply stop your coverage because you would rather buy insurance elsewhere or no longer want to pay for it. Changes are normally only possible:
during annual open enrollment, or
within 30 days of a qualifying life event — for example, gaining other coverage, marriage, divorce, or the birth or adoption of a child. Supporting documentation is required.
See How can I change my benefits? and What is a Qualifying Life Event? for how to request a change, and What documentation is required for a Qualifying Life Event (QLE)? for what to send. The healthcare.gov glossary entry for a qualifying life event lists common examples.
If you missed your enrollment window
If your window has closed, your next opportunity is the next annual open enrollment, unless you have a qualifying life event before then. If your enrollment step recorded a decline you did not intend, that can often be reopened — see How to get your benefits enrollment step reopened, and raise it quickly.
Planning around your end date
If you know your assignment or employment is ending and you need to know your exact last day of coverage, or what options exist for continuing cover afterwards, email support@ascen.com with your full name, the email on your Ascen account, and your expected end date. Ask before your last day rather than after, so you have time to arrange whatever comes next.
Who to contact
Ascen (support@ascen.com) — your end date and last day of coverage, changing or ending your benefits, qualifying life events, and anything about your enrolment record.
Your staffing Partner — whether your assignment is being extended, and what work is coming next.