Self-employed persons or those who purchase independent health insurance should pay attention to this bit of news. A recent eHealthInsurance survey has found that 89 percent of these persons aren’t aware of the many rebates and refunds available to them under the Affordable Care Act of 2010. Do you fall into this category?

eHealthInsurance found that consumers feel they should get a rebate of some sort, however, the vast majority of them have no idea they’re eligible. According to the survey, 23 percent fully support the health care reform law while 32 percent oppose it; nearly 45 percent support only portions of the law.

The healthcare reform law requires that insurers send rebates to policyholders if they failed to spend at least 80 percent of their income from premiums on actual medical care. August 1, 2012 represents the deadline by which the first rebates must be sent out.

Analysis by the Kaiser Family Foundation found that an estimated $1.3 billion should be received by August by consumers nationwide, with Texas receiving $186 million, the largest combined rebate of any state. About 92 percent of Texas customers in the individual market can expect money back – the highest share of any state according to Kaiser – and each policyholder in that category is projected to receive an average $178.

Yet through the survey, Texans were among those most likely to oppose the Affordable Care Act at 43 percent.

The eHealth analysts found that what survey participants think about the price of their coverage seems to have a strong correlation with what they think about PPACA.

"Those who support the Affordable Care Act are less likely to feel their insurance is affordable (35 percent) compared to those who oppose the law (65 percent)," the analysts say.

The anonymous health insurance survey was conducted from May 10 through May 18, 2012, and involved the participation of 348 respondents, all of which purchased policies through eHealthInsurance.