As Open Enrollment Begins, Camp Verde Community Library Encourages Consumers to Save Money – and Exercise Caution

Camp Verde AZ (October 26, 2020) – The health insurance landscape can be confusing, but free, local in-person help is available at Camp Verde Community Library. The library is here to help you learn about and enroll in health insurance coverage plans. Thanks to a Libraries Connecting You to Coverage grant from the Public Library Association, specific staff have received the training and access to certify the library as a Counselor Designated Organization with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.

Open enrollment on the Affordable Care Act (ACA) marketplaces starts November 1 and ends December 15. This is the time for consumers to examine the deals found on the marketplace, to save money and better meet their health care needs. In fact, consumers who went on HealthCare.gov, compared their plan options, and selected the plan that best fit their health and financial needs ended up paying 38 percent less per month on average in 2019 than the consumers whose plans were automatically renewed.

Top 5 Things to Know about Open Enrollment

1. What: Comprehensive coverage at an affordable price. HealthCare.Gov plans must include key benefits like mental health care, maternity care, prescription drug coverage, and hospitalization services. In addition to good coverage, most marketplace shoppers will qualify for a discount based on their income. Last year, more than 8 in 10 shoppers could get a plan for less than $100/month. 
2. When: Open Enrollment runs November 1 – December 15, 2020. In-person assistance at the library is available Wednesday, November 4 – Saturday, December 12, 2020 on Wednesdays from 9:30a-noon, Thursdays from 1:30p-4:00p, and Saturdays from 1:00p-4:30p.
3. Where: Call (928)-554-8384 to make an appointment at Camp Verde Community Library or go to HealthCare.Gov and click on Find Local Help. HealthCare.Gov can only sell Affordable Care Act plans.
4. How: Community members can enroll online, over the phone, or in-person. Log on to the official ACA marketplace at https://www.healthcare.gov/, or https://www.cuidadodesalud.gov/es/. Call the marketplace call center at 1-800-318-2596 or visit https://widget.getcoveredamerica.org/ to find local help and make an appointment.
5. Why: Peace of mind. Financial security. Access to comprehensive care. There are so many reasons to sign up for affordable and comprehensive coverage.

In Arizona, 36% of current marketplace consumers will have plans available for 2020 that cost less than $10 per month after tax credits. More than 8 of ten marketplace enrollees in Arizona received premium tax credits to help them pay for their 2019 coverage. In addition, over 40% of Arizona marketplace enrollees qualified for cost-sharing reductions, which lowered their out-of-pocket costs for health care services. 

The number of insurance plans people can choose in the marketplace in Arizona increased from an average of 18 plans in 2019 to an average of 33 plans for 2020. And even for the minority of marketplace consumers who don’t qualify for tax credits, it’s worth shopping around for the plan that is best for you.

Consumers enrolling in a plan on HealthCare.gov, known as a Qualified Health Plan or QHP, are guaranteed to receive comprehensive coverage, with no pre-existing condition exclusions or markups. In addition to covering essential health benefits (including prescription drugs, mental health treatment, maternity care, among other health care services), consumers enrolled in a QHP also receive free preventive care services, such as annual checkups and immunizations.

Consumers should avoid insurance plans offered outside of HealthCare.gov that seem too good to be true. Unfortunately, a bevy of “junk insurance” products will be available due to loosening of regulations, and they pose huge financial risks to consumers. These products aren’t required to comply with ACA regulations, which means  they can deny coverage to consumers with pre-existing conditions, charge consumers more based on their gender, reject claims altogether for health care services related to a pre-existing condition, and impose annual coverage limits.

To learn more, please visit: https://www.campverde.az.gov/departments/community-library, or call 918-554-8380. Camp Verde Community Library is located at 130 N Black Bridge Road, Camp Verde AZ and is open Monday – Saturday 9:00a-5:00p.