On October 1, uninsured Americans were able for the first time to sign up to compare and purchase affordable health insurance or find out if they are eligible for free or low-cost healthcare through Medicaid. Covered California – the state’s health insurance marketplace – provides tools for residents to shop for affordable health insurance under the mandate of the federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. By law, health insurance coverage can’t be dropped or denied because of pre-existing medical conditions or illnesses.
The demand for affordable health insurance is astronomical. While the law doesn’t go into effect until January 2014, millions of people accessed HealthCare.gov – the website for residents of the 36 states not running their own exchanges – and in California alone, Covered California processed over 16,000 applications on the first day of the launch.
“As healthcare professionals and patient advocates, we celebrate this historic day and have much to be proud of,” says Ingela Dahlgren, Executive Director of SEIU Nurse Alliance of California. “The work ahead of us it to educate ourselves and our patients about the Affordable Care Act to ensure that they get the health insurance they need and are entitled to receive so that we can focus our attention on taking care of our patients who need treatment.”
Visit Covered California to learn more and share the information with your patients. Together we can make sure that all Californians have the health insurance they need to get the healthcare they deserve.
