Open enrollment for health insurance coverage is here

Carolyn Thomson, Affordable Care Act Health Insurance Navigator for the Epilepsy Alliance, Florida, joined Good Morning Keys on KeysTalk 96.9/102.5FM yesterday morning to talk about health insurance.

Open enrollment is upon us.

Thomson said, “This is the 12th year the insurance has evolved from its beginning, and it’s quite affordable for most people. So yeah, federally certified, that means that the government has said it’s okay for me to do their insurance. But there’s something I really want to stress on, that is, I don’t make commission off of any of this. This is a free service to you, so that’s really the point of it all, is I can help, but I’m not going to make money off of you and I think that’s important to know.”

What is open enrollment?

Thomson said, “It is the time of year where you get to review what your insurance is, or if you even have any so it’s time for to sign up for insurance, make a review of what you have, maybe make changes to your current plan. With the marketplace, you get tax credits based on your income, and then you reconcile on a tax return. So it’s really important to have your information up to date so you don’t get caught off guard and there’s new options this year, so maybe you want to switch it out.”

Open enrollment goes through January 15.

Thomson said, “If you sign up by the 15th of December, it will go into effect as of January 1, but after that, it would be February 1. There’s also special enrollment and that’s why I can help. Health insurance is preventative medicine and emergency medicine. People tell me, oh, I’m healthy. I don’t need it. Well, being healthy is a great thing, but staying healthy, and even a healthy person can fall down and break their leg, and that can be a very expensive thing. Now with the Affordable Care Act, you have 10 essential benefits, and emergency and preventative are both covered for all insurance plans under the Affordable Care Act.”

How can people get the help?

Thomson said, “I’m going to put myself out here on the line, because I’m going to give you my personal phone number so you can get in touch with me. I’ll make an appointment with you, and we’ll figure out what it is that you need. So my number is 305-767-3883. Leave me a message. We’ll get you an appointment. I can do things over the phone. I’m at the Gato Building on Tuesdays and Thursdays, starting next week, you can come and see me at the community college community day on Saturday. I’m out and about.”

For more information, click here:  https://monroe.floridahealth.gov/index.html