Northwest, Iowa – If you’re enrolled in a 2015 Marketplace health insurance plan, you can renew or change plans for 2016, however, the window closes Dec. 15th. If you haven’t applied for insurance on HealthCare.gov before, Iowa State University Extension and Outreach says there are some things you’ll need to know about the Health Insurance Marketplace (sometimes known as the health insurance “exchange” or “Obamacare exchange”).
Iowa State University Extension and Outreach is offering two free workshops to help area residents understand how to make smart choices for purchasing health care coverage. The Smart Choice Health Insurance workshops build health insurance literacy so you can make informed decisions and choose a health insurance policy that meets your needs.
Workshops are Wednesday, Jan. 13 from 10-11 a.m. at the Sioux Center Community Hospital and Health Center in Conference Room 1, located at 1101 9th Street SE, and from 5 – 6 p.m. at the Osceola Community Hospital in Sibley, in the Hospital Education Room. Snow dates for workshops are Wednesday, Jan. 20.
Through the Smart Choice Health Insurance workshop, attendees will:
♦ Understand how to calculate the cost of health insurance plans
♦ Learn how to understand which health care providers participate in various plans
♦ Find out whether they may qualify for tax credits or cost sharing assistance to pay for coverage
♦ Use a guide and a tool for identifying their own health insurance needs and priorities
♦ Be able to compare different plans available through the Health Insurance Marketplace
♦ Learn how to purchase coverage at www.healthcare.gov
This workshop will help people choose coverage that best fits their family’s budget and health care needs and use that plan efficiently once enrolled, according to Jan Monahan, a human sciences family finance specialist with ISU Extension and Outreach. Consumer assistants from Sioux Center Community Hospital and Health Center, Osceola Community Hospital, and a navigator from Sioux City will be assisting with applications and questions after the presentation.
The Smart Choice Health Insurance Program is made possible by funding from ISU Extension and Outreach in Sioux and Osceola Counties.
For information about the Health Insurance Marketplace workshops, contact your local Extension and Outreach office or Jan Monahan at jmonahan@iastate.edu. Find this and other local programming at www.extension.iastate.edu. Click on “Locate a county office”.
