COLUMBUS, Ohio - The federal health insurance marketplace is now open, and this fall, there's more help to guide Ohioans through the process of finding coverage.
After cutbacks over the past few years, the federal government has quadrupled the number of navigators to help people find health insurance for 2022.
Zach Reat is the director of health initiatives with the Ohio Association of Foodbanks, which is coordinating the "Get Covered Ohio" campaign. He said there are more than 50 trained, certified and licensed navigators in Ohio who can simplify the process.
"We can help people enter in all of their information to qualify for tax credits and subsidies," said Reat, "understand the different health insurance plans that are available, and then make sure they are selecting the plan that is best for them and fits into their budget."
More than ten health insurance companies are offering marketplace plans in Ohio for 2022, and all but three counties have three or more options.
December 15 is the deadline to sign up for marketplace coverage that begins January 1. Appointments with a navigator can be made online, at 'getcoveredohio.org.'
Reat explained that the American Rescue Plan is providing improved financial assistance that can lower premiums, with four out of five people eligible for a plan that may cost $10 a month or less. Also, he noted, millions more people will qualify for tax incentives to lower their premiums.
"So, even if people have been to the marketplace and found the plans unaffordable in years past," said Reat, "it's definitely worth going and shopping, and you can do that again with the assistance of a navigator."
Some 201,000 Ohioans were enrolled in plans this year, about 2% more than in 2020. Reat said most are people who don't have access to insurance through an employer.
"Like people who are self-employed," said Reat, "people who are working several different sort-of gig economy jobs, and other individuals maybe who are doing consulting work, or other work that's not through a larger employer that offers health insurance."
Navigators can also help adults and families with low incomes enroll in Medicaid.
Disclosure: Ohio Association of Foodbanks contributes to our fund for reporting on Hunger/Food/Nutrition, Livable Wages/Working Families, Poverty Issues, Welfare Reform. If you would like to help support news in the public interest,
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Access to reduced-price medication is a necessity for many rural Missourians with low income.
Rep. Cindy O'Laughlin, R-Shelbina, the Senate Floor Leader, said Big Pharma is trying to confuse legislators with unrelated hot-button topics such as abortion access and illegal immigration in a last-ditch effort to stop the state from joining a program to force drugmakers to sell medicines at a discount.
"Appealing to nuclear topics, which really do not apply in this situation, is a disingenuous way to try to defeat a bill that is actually good for Missouri," O'Laughlin asserted.
O'Laughlin pointed out the program is transparent, and uses the tax money saved to help low-income families deal with chronic conditions such as diabetes.
The drugmakers object to the government forcing them to give significant discounts, arguing hospitals' and for-profit pharmacies' bottom lines, particularly those owned by pharmacy benefits managers, are being exploited. Nationally, 46% of contract pharmacy agreements involve pharmacies linked to the three largest benefits managers.
Rep. Tara Peters, R-Rolla, introduced the 340B contract pharmacy access billand said the lobbying is absurd.
"Federally, 340B program does not allow for abortion drugs," Peters stressed. "Why would any legislation that we're trying to pass in the state allow for that? I mean, the thought of that even being in existence is absolutely ludicrous."
The Missouri Senate passed the bill 27-3 on Monday and it now goes to the House.
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Alabama is running out of time to tackle Medicaid expansion this legislative session.
More than 230 people gathered earlier this month with the group Alabama Arise, urging state lawmakers to prioritize the issue. Their message: Access to health care isn't just a matter of policy, it can be a matter of life and death.
Debbie Smith, Cover Alabama campaign director for Alabama Arise, said as the session winds down, the group will continue to echo the call for increased access to health coverage. She thinks it would not only save lives but revitalize communities across the state.
"Over 80% of our rural hospitals are operating in the red," Smith pointed out. "Not a great stat. About 19 rural hospitals are at immediate risk of closure, and those are the lifeblood of those communities. They're on life support."
Smith emphasized hospitals at financial risk also put their workforce at risk. Those who are against Medicaid expansion believe it is ultimately unaffordable for the state. However, Smith argued it could save the state nearly $400 million over the next six years. According to the Public Affairs Research Council of Alabama, those savings would be enough to cover the cost.
The council's study also showed Medicaid expansion would generate nearly $2 billion of economic growth. Beyond economic benefits, Smith pointed to the stark disparities in maternal and infant mortality rates in Alabama.
She stressed Medicaid expansion would do more than provide health care coverage during pregnancy or postpartum, it is about ensuring comprehensive coverage.
"We've been lucky enough to expand Medicaid coverage up to 12 months postpartum but we still need to figure out how to cover people before they even get pregnant," Smith asserted. "It's really important for people to have health coverage so they can address any kind of issues they might have, like if they have diabetes or high blood pressure that might affect their pregnancy in the future."
With limited time left in the legislative session, she noted one option could be Gov. Kay Ivey's executive authority to enact Medicaid expansion. Smith added using the power could be the simplest path forward, backed by the promise of additional funding from the American Rescue Plan.
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A Connecticut bill would expand the state's paid sick leave law.
The initial 2011 law requires 40 hours of paid sick leave for workers at employers with 50 businesses or more. The new bill covers all workers regardless of their employer's size.
Janée Woods Weber, executive director of the nonprofit She Leads Justice, said the legislation can benefit workers without access to paid sick leave.
"These are people for whom taking a few hours off when their child has a cold or perhaps they need to take themselves to a doctor's appointment are the kinds of challenges that many of us don't worry about, those of us who do have access to paid sick days," Woods Weber explained.
Small businesses were concerned about how the change could affect them. To address worries, the bill has a three-year implementation cycle giving them time to adapt. It also creates a task force studying the feasibility of providing tax credits to businesses with the smallest workforces. The bill passed the House and awaits a vote in the Senate.
An estimated 11% of workers are eligible for paid sick leave under the current criteria. Though expanding the law has taken over a decade, Woods Weber argued it has always been necessary.
"Nobody should be forced to make what is often times a very difficult and sometimes impossible choice between their livelihood," Woods Weber emphasized. "Getting a paycheck and getting to take paid time off to take care of themselves or a loved one if they get sick."
She added that once the bill is passed, the state can build off it by allowing people to earn more than 40 hours of paid sick time. Woods Weber said the isolation requirements during the pandemic forced anyone who got COVID-19 to use their allotted sick time all at once for isolation.
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