We just read a New York Times article that claims “Only 11 Percent of Uninsured Know About Obamacare’s Next Open Enrollment”. In case you missed it, here’s the gist:
“This year, the big challenge for officials behind the Affordable Care Act may not be making the website work, but getting customers to come shop in the first place.”
The Kaiser Family Foundation conducted a study and found that even with the second open enrollment period under the Affordable Care Act starting on November 15, 2014:
“Nine in 10 (89 percent) of the uninsured are unaware of when the next open enrollment period begins, including 76 percent who say they don’t know and 13 percent who suggest a time other than November 2014.”
According to the NY Times article, this is especially bad because the Open Enrollment Period is also shorter this time, and closes on February 15th, 2015!
Luckily, if you are reading this, then you are no longer part of the uniformed 89%!
Do you know anyone that might still be uninsured?
Here is some more surprising information from the study (well, surprising to us anyway):
“The 4 in 10 who expect to remain uninsured give a variety of reasons why they don’t think they will get coverage. Eighteen percent say they will remain uninsured because they don’t think they will be able to find an affordable plan (18 percent of the uninsured overall), while another 12 percent say they don’t think they will get insurance because they don’t want to be forced to buy anything (including 3 percent who say they would rather pay the fine than pay for coverage).”
According to the NY Times article:
“Under the Affordable Care Act, most Americans are required to obtain health insurance or pay a fine, and projections from the Congressional Budget Office estimate that millions more will enroll this year. People with incomes low enough to qualify for Medicaid — about $27,000 for a family of three — can sign up for insurance at any time. But the open enrollment period applies to everyone else who doesn’t experience a major life change during the year, such as losing a job or getting divorced. Of course, in order to sign up for coverage, eligible people need to know it’s available….
“The start date wasn’t the only thing that the uninsured didn’t know. According to the survey, two-thirds of the uninsured said they know “only a little” or “nothing at all” about the health insurance marketplaces. More than half said they were not aware that they might qualify for financial assistance to help them afford their premiums — a key motivator to sign up, since several surveys have shown that many uninsured people are worried about the cost of coverage.”
So, who do you know that is still uninsured? Please share this information with them, and, if we can be of any assistance, please do not hesitate to give us a call (877.789.5831) or complete the confidential form below and one of our experts will be in touch with you right away!
