Drake Bell Slams SAG-AFTRA After Not Qualifying for Health Insurance: “Do Not Become an Actor”

Drake Bell is calling out SAG-AFTRA after he didn’t qualify for health insurance with the actors union. The Drake & Josh alum took to his Instagram Story on Tuesday to share a screenshot of his account on the SAG-AFTRA health plan website, with a message that read, “You do not qualify for Health Plan coverage at this time. Your reported covered earnings from July 2025-June 2026 did not meet minimum eligibility requirements, or you did not qualify other eligibility rules.” The website also said Bell has earned $17,480.53, but needs $11,452.47 more to qualify for coverage. As of 2026, SAG-AFTRA requires minimum earnings of $28,090 for its health plan. Bell added on the post, “Do not become an actor. Do not join SAG. You can work for 35 years and they still say [middle finger emoji].” He also tagged SAG-AFTRA and current president Sean Astin, who previously starred in Lord of the Rings and The Goonies. “@SAGAFTRA really though @SeanAstin you’re doing a bang up job. How about stop using actors to run things maybe? They literally just know how to say words in front of a camera,” Bell concluded. The Hollywood Reporter reached out to SAG-AFTRA for comment but did not hear back at the time of publication. In recent years, Bell has turned his focus to music. He released his latest album, Non-Stop Flight, in 2024 and has been touring since, most recently over the summer with stops in the U.S. and Mexico. However, he canceled the tour’s final shows that were scheduled for the end of July and early August. “For personal reasons, and with great sadness, I have to postpone the final concerts of this tour,” he wrote in a statement at the time. “Please know that I did everything I could do be there with you, but at this time, I am simply unable to do so.” Bell rose to fame in the early 2000s with his roles on the Nickelodeon programs The Amanda Show and later Drake & Josh, where he starred opposite Josh Peck. He’s also done quite a bit of voice work throughout his career. In 2024, he revealed publicly for the first time in the docuseries Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV that he was the unnamed victim who had been sexually abused as a teen by former dialogue coach Brian Peck. Bell joins other actors who have been open about their struggle to get health insurance, including Atypical star Jack Haven and Princess Diaries star Heather Matarazzo.