21-city bus tour touts affordable health insurance for Californians

Covered California Executive Director Peter Lee

SACRAMENTO, California — Covered California officials have begun a nine-day, 21-city bus tour to spread the word about the opportunity for millions of Californians to buy affordable health insurance beginning November 15.

The statewide tour led by Covered California Executive Director Peter V. Lee will take place during the week leading up to and the first few days of open enrollment, a three-month window from November 15 to February 15, when Californians who need insurance cannot be turned away by health insurance companies and when many can get federal subsidies to dramatically lower their cost of coverage.

Lee and other leaders of Covered California, community partners and elected officials will attend enrollment events and visit storefronts to encourage the uninsured to get health coverage during the open-enrollment period through Covered California.

“In communities of all sizes in our state, we will share the stories of real people who have benefited from the care and coverage they have obtained and encourage those without insurance to get covered,” Lee explained

The tour, which started at the State Capitol on Monday, November 10, will include stops in Petaluma, Gilroy, Fresno, San Bernardino, Palm Springs, San Luis Obispo, Salinas, Chico and Redding, as well as stops in major cities such as Los Angeles, San Francisco and San Diego.

A major media event is planned in Los Angeles on November 14, the day before open enrollment begins, at the historic Grand Park in front of Los Angeles City Hall.

The bus tour takes place as Covered California ramps up its “I’m In” statewide marketing campaign, with multilingual television ads running in every major market to let Californians know that open enrollment starts November 15.

The bus tour is part a $95-million community outreach drive supported by federal grant funding for the implementation of the Affordable Care Act in the second year.Lee noted that open enrollment is shorter this year, meaning consumers will have less time to consider their options and sign up for coverage for 2015.

“We will need to work harder to enroll those who are still uninsured,” Lee said. “We want to get the word out to Californians not to gamble with their health by going without insurance.”

Covered California anticipates a total enrollment of 1.7 million Californians by the end of the coming open-enrollment period — 1.5 million in subsidized coverage and 230,000 in unsubsidized coverage. This forecast represents an increase of about 500,000 in total enrollment (43 percent).

Among improvements made by Covered California for this year’s open enrollment include:

• An experienced team of more than 28,000 people who can enroll Californians confidentially and at no cost, including more than 12,000 Certified Insurance Agents, 10,000 county eligibility workers and 6,400 Certified Enrollment Counselors. Consumers seeking help near them can visit CoveredCA.com and click “Find Local Help” to search by ZIP code for free help to sign up for coverage.
• More than doubling the number of Service Center representatives — state employees and contractors — to dramatically reduce wait times and help consumers enroll.
• Expanded Service Center hours and adding more bilingual staffers to help consumers in their own language rather than using interpreters.
• Refreshing the website to ease consumers’ exploration of their coverage options, with better-organized journeys as they explore health coverage options, including Medi-Cal.
• Additional 200 storefront locations open on evenings and weekends to give consumers who work full time a place they can visit and return to enroll or get questions answered.

“The Affordable Care Act presents historic opportunities for all individuals — sick or healthy — to get the health coverage and care they need,” Lee said. “Open enrollment is the time when they can get free, confidential assistance to explore their options and get financial support based on their income to purchase health coverage that’s right for them.”

Covered California offers a range of choices of private health insurance plans. Consumers can choose the health plan and level of coverage (Bronze, Silver, Gold or Platinum) that best meets their health needs and budget.

Depending on their income, many consumers who seek insurance through Covered California may find they qualify for health coverage in Medi-Cal, which offers low-cost and no-cost coverage.

Covered California is an independent part of the state government whose job is to make the new market work for California’s consumers. It is overseen by a five-member board appointed by the governor and the Legislature. For more information about Covered California, please visit www.CoveredCA.com.

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