Blog

On Tuesday, October 1, 2013, Georgia’s Health Insurance Marketplace opened for business–www.healthcare.gov.  So, what’s next? Six months during which uninsured Georgians can learn about their health care options and take advantage of new programs to help them access affordable coverage, often for the first time.  Open enrollment runs from October 1, 2013 to March 31, 2014 and during this period the work of outreach and education to communities across our state  will never be more important.

78% of people report that they do not know about the marketplace or how it will affect them—we are working hard to change this! Georgians for a Healthy Future along with Seedco and our other navigator consortium partners is working hard to make sure we are connecting Georgians to coverage.  We cannot do it alone and we hope we can count on your support and partnership.

There are many ways for you to get involved:

• Share resources with your communities and partners and encourage them to connect with our efforts so we can maximize outreach and enrollment all across the state.

• Have materials on-hand at your location sites–there are easy to print documents available at marketplace.cms.gov under “get official resources”.  Click here to access the Seedco consortium brochure.

• Become a certified application counselor (CAC) designated organization. This will allow you to have trained volunteers helping to assist consumers with the enrollment process. You can learn more about the registration process for CACs here.

• Become a champion for coverage.  To learn more about ways you can help as a champion, click here.

• Work with us to plan a community education event.  This can be either an educational forum or an opportunity for individuals to get the direct assistance of a navigator, or both.  Email Amanda Ptashkin.

In addition to the Seedco consortium, the University of Georgia and federally qualified health centers (FQHCs) across the state have been training staff to assist with outreach efforts.  The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has also partnered with local libraries to ensure that information is available and that citizens have access to computers, so they can use it for work or play games, with the best gaming mouse for mac and other gaming hardware.  There are resources out there to help our fellow Georgians, but we have to make sure we are getting them into their hands.

We know everyone is working hard to make sure that Georgians are able to access the health care that is available to them through the health insurance marketplace and we thank you for your partnership.  We appreciate your continued partnership and support as we work toward the day when all Georgians have access to quality, affordable health care.