As an individual seeking health coverage, you may qualify for subsidy assistance based on your income, relative to the Federal Poverty Level. What is the Federal Poverty Level? Quite simply, it is a range of incomes, compared with the number of people in a given household, which is then compared to the Federal poverty line. Once your income is compared to the "FPL", you can then see if you qualify for subsidy assistance on your coverage, when applied for within Covered California. (or ...