Jennifer Molina’s I’m Covered Story: Taking Control of My Health

You can read this story on HHS.gov, HERE. 

Between my college studies and working to pay for my education, my life is pretty busy. I don’t have time to be sick. But illnesses don’t care about schedules, as I found out this winter.

They also don’t care what’s in your bank account. I couldn’t get health insurance through my sales job, I couldn’t afford it through my school, and getting it on my own was way too expensive. Prices were outrageous.

So when I got really sick, I decided I had no choice but to wait it out. Medical care is too costly when you’re paying for it on your own. I took over-the-counter medicines, but they could only do so much.

As a student who wants to become a nurse, I knew that taking care of my health needed to be a higher priority. So I checked out the Health Insurance Marketplace and got help from a navigator who ran through various plans and benefits with me and explained deductibles and premiums.

Because of the Affordable Care Act, I was able to choose the coverage that was right for me. My new plan costs only $21 a month after tax credits.

And I’m not the only one who was able to find an affordable plan. Millions of Americans have already enrolled in affordable, quality health coverage through the Marketplace.

With the help of the navigator, I found it was a pretty easy process to get covered. I tell my friends: Just look into it. Don’t pass up this opportunity.

When I first started looking, I thought it wasn’t going to be affordable for me, but I was wrong. I’ve since learned that nearly 7 in 10 people who signed up for plans with tax credits through the federal Marketplace got covered for $100 a month or less. Like me, nearly half were able to get covered for $50 a month or less. This is particularly important to the well-being of my friends and family, because Hispanic-Americans are more likely to be uninsured than any other racial or ethnic group.

You can sign up at HealthCare.gov, or in Spanish at CuidadoDeSalud.gov when open enrollment begins again on November 15. Folks with special circumstances, like people who have lost job-based insurance, gotten married or aged off a parent’s plan at 26, may qualify for a special enrollment period, allowing them to enroll in a Marketplace plan before November. And if you are eligible for Medicaid or CHIP, you can enroll at any time.

You can also contact the Marketplace Call Center -- 1-800-318-2596 (TTY: 1-855-889-4325 – anytime, day or night, and get assistance in English or Spanish or any of 150 languages.

For me, health insurance means peace of mind and being able to feel safe. Thanks to the Marketplace, I don’t have to worry about what to do when I’m ill. I know that I’m covered at any time, any place.