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Getting Ready for the Health Insurance Marketplace: Enrollment and Coverage Information On October 1st, the Health Insurance Marketplace will open and individuals and families will be able to apply and enroll in quality, affordable health coverage. With this date quickly approaching, it is essential that we all work together to make sure that people with lived experience of mental health labels and histories are aware of their new options for health care coverage and that they understand how to take advantage of these options. To facilitate our efforts to educate consumers about the new Health Care Law, what the Law means for them, and how they can take advantage of the new options for better, more affordable health coverage, National Coalition for Mental Health Recovery (NCMHR) and National Empowerment Center (NEC) partnered with the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) and other national organizations to develop a 30-minute narrated training toolkit called Getting Ready for the Health Insurance Marketplace. The toolkit is available online for you to access through the NCMHR website: http://www.ncmhr.org/affordable-care-act/enrollment.htm The toolkit provides an overview of the new Health Care Law and the Health Insurance Marketplace and how individuals with lived experience of mental health labels and histories might benefit from it. The toolkit also contains numerous outreach materials (including articles, brochures, fact sheets, and other resources) for organizations to use to inform uninsured individuals about their new coverage options under the Health Care Law. Many of the materials are available in multiple languages and customized for specific population segments, like different ethnic/racial groups. NCMHR and NEC encourage peer-led organizations and individuals to view the toolkit training, incorporate the information it provides, and utilize the toolkit’s communication materials to give people with lived experience a better understanding of their new health coverage options and how they can take advantage of them. While there is still much work to be done in transforming the mental health system to a truly person-directed, recovery-oriented model of care, healthcare reform provides the opportunity to promote such services and supports and achieve meaningful systemic change. Peer-led organizations and our allies have an important role to play in making sure that people with lived experience have the best health coverage they can get, so they can access physical and “behavioral” healthcare services they need to achieve and maintain wellness. This toolkit can be a valuable resource in disseminating information on enrollment and healthcare options to members of our communities. |
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