Drake Bell says SAG-AFTRA denied him health cover after $17,480 earnings year
Drake Bell says 35 years as a performer was not enough to keep his union health cover.
The actor and musician shared a screenshot from the SAG-AFTRA Health Plan to his Instagram Story on Tuesday, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The message told him he had not qualified for the next period of coverage. Instagram Stories are short-lived posts that disappear after 24 hours.
The notice assessed his reported covered earnings from July 2025 to June 2026. It listed that figure at $17,480.53. As of 2026, the Health Plan requires minimum covered earnings of $28,090 to qualify. The screenshot said Bell needed another $11,452.47 to reach eligibility.
He was short by more than $11,000. Bell reacted angrily in text placed over the screenshot. He wrote: “Do not become an actor. Do not join SAG. You can work for 35 years and they still say [middle finger emoji].”
He then tagged both SAG-AFTRA and SAG-AFTRA president Sean Astin in follow-up posts criticising the decision. Astin is the current president of the union. The posts were published from Bell’s own account and were described in the report on 14 October.
SAG-AFTRA had not responded at the time of publication. The Hollywood Reporter said it had contacted the union for comment on Bell’s claim and had not heard back. A reported denial is not a final determination until the organisation confirms it, and no additional detail on Bell’s work history was given.
Health cover through SAG-AFTRA is not automatic with membership. Performers must earn above a set amount in qualifying union work during each 12-month assessment period to unlock cover. That means a long career does not carry cover forward on its own. Each year is counted separately.
That threshold has moved higher over time. In 2020, the Health Plan set minimum earnings of $25,950 to qualify for health coverage, according to NPR. The change was part of wider cuts to benefits. In December 2020, a group of performers filed a class-action complaint against the Health Plan over those cuts, alleging age discrimination.
Bell released the album Non-Stop Flight in 2024. His post did not list which jobs counted toward the July 2025 to June 2026 total.
What stands out here is the maths, not the membership card. One qualifying year does not secure the next. For a working performer, the count starts again from zero every time.
