Time to reach out…finally

An army is amassing - composed of payers, providers, healthcare organizations, businesses, community and consumer groups - to help educate and guide a large part of the population to sign up for coverage on the health insurance exchanges.
One of the many criticisms of the Obama administration's handling of the Affordable Care Act is the lack of information to help consumers understand the law and how it will affect them.
The HIX publicity blitz is timed to reach individuals shortly before they will make decisions about their healthcare, when they are most engaged. This is key, because it's critical that large numbers enroll in the exchanges in the first year or two, and that they attract many young, healthy adults.
With little time left before enrollment opens in October, insurers and other organizations expect to educate and convince the uninsured, and those with pre-existing conditions, to enroll when they have been excluded for so long.
For example, the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association, with 38 state and local health plans, including 14 owned by WellPoint, has set up a website with drugstore chain Walgreen to promote and distribute information about the ACA in the retailer's 8,000 stores. They're encouraging uninsured individuals to shop and enroll in coverage through health insurance exchanges, and discover if they are eligible for subsidies.
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina has opened several retail offices in strip malls to offer outreach and, come October, enroll individuals in coverage. Cigna is working to promote and explain the exchanges where it is initially participating, in Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Tennessee and Texas.
One group that surprisingly doesn't know yet if they will obtain health insurance - almost seven in 10 aren't aware - are uninsured individuals with pre-existing conditions, according to InsuranceQuotes.com.
Only 18 percent of uninsured individuals with pre-existing conditions are definitely planning to purchase health insurance; 14 percent plan to remain uninsured, and 68 percent are undecided, the report said.
Most said it was due to a lack of information, or misinformation. States have started publishing health plan premiums. Once the exchanges open, more costs will be available so consumers can shop and compare plans, said Sally McCarty, a healthcare reform expert with the Center on Health Insurance Reforms at the Georgetown University Health Policy Institute.
Before the exchanges open, the federal government, many states and community organizations plan a publicity barrage with TV commercials, billboards and ads to educate consumers. More than 100 national organizations and businesses have volunteered to spread the word about coverage available in the exchanges.
Also, while the Health and Human Services Department recently granted $67 million to 105 navigator grant applicants in federally-facilitated and state partnership exchanges to serve as an in-person resource for those who want more assistance in shopping for and enrolling in plans in the exchanges.
Kicking off these publicity campaigns close to when the exchanges open will help make sure that the information is fresh in the minds of consumers when it's time to start insurance shopping.