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10 Reasons to Get Covered, Ten Days left to Enroll

March 21, 2014 at 1:57 PM ET by ONDCP Staff
Summary: 
As of today, there are only 10 days left to enroll in health coverage at healthcare.gov before open enrollment ends on March 31. For those of us in recovery—and for anyone who loves someone in recovery—health coverage now carries an incredibly important benefit: substance use disorder treatment is covered like any other medical service.

As of today, there are only 10 days left to enroll in health coverage at healthcare.gov before open enrollment ends on March 31.

If you haven’t enrolled yet, go to healthcare.gov today to sign up. For most people, the entire application process takes only 15 – 20 minutes.

For those of us in recovery—and for anyone who loves someone in recovery—health coverage now carries an incredibly important benefit: substance use disorder treatment is covered like any other medical service. The Affordable Care Act ends discriminatory practices that used to limit insurance coverage for behavioral health treatment and services, expanding these services to 62 million Americans.

Are you covered yet? If not, head over to healthcare.gov apply now.

We know that substance use disorders are treatable—and recovery is possible. But too many Americans have not been able to get treatment because they didn’t have insurance coverage. According to the 2012 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, about 23 million Americans were in need of treatment for a substance use disorder, and only 2.5 million—about 1-in-10—actually received it.

That’s why we need your help to make sure your friends, family, and loved ones are covered and have access to health care.

With just one application, you can also find out whether you qualify for tax credits to help pay for insurance or other free or low-cost coverage options.

You can compare your options based on price, benefits, quality and other features, and enroll in a plan that fits your needs and your budget.

To mark the 10 final days of open enrollment, here are 10 reasons to get covered. Check them out, then head over to healthcare.gov.

10 reasons to get covered:

  1. Mental health and substance abuse disorder services must be covered at parity with medical benefits.
  2. Six in ten uninsured Americans can get coverage for less than $100 a month.
  3. Preventive services like well-woman visits, cancer screenings, flu shots and more cost you nothing out of pocket.
  4. It's illegal for insurance companies to charge more or deny coverage due to a pre-existing condition or cancel your coverage when you get sick.
  5. All plans must cover essential health benefits including outpatient care, hospital visits, prescriptions, and more.
  6. Because accidents happen, and no one is invincible.
  7. Insurance companies can no longer impose yearly limits on coverage for essential health benefits.
  8. No one deserves to go broke just because they get sick.
  9. Because you only live once.
  10. You can apply for coverage online at healthcare.gov. on the phone by calling 1-800-318-2596, in person (find local help here) or by mail (download the application to mail in here) -- the whole process takes most people about 15 to 20 minutes