Affordable Care Act / Obamacare and Health Insurance enrollment. - What Mpowerment Projects can do.

Everyone needs access to affordable health care, especially young adult bisexual and gay men. 

Millennial young bisexual and gay men's lives are in transition. There is a lot going on. Moving out, being independent, finding a job and/or going to a University or Community College.  Why is it important to think about preventative health care?  Yes, well gay men are at increased risk for certain chronic diseases and mental health problems. HIV infections are also increasing among young adult gay and bisexual men.  Think about it, nobody should go broke because they become ill, need medications or break an arm. Let's make it a goal to get more young men enrolled in health insurance. 

The DENIM Collection | Mpowerment Washington DC

This year open enrollment for the Affordable Care Act (ACA) / Obamacare begins November 1, 2015. 

The deadline to sign up for coverage for January 1, 2016. 

Open enrollment ends January 31, 2016.

If you want a new plan to start January 1, 2015, you must renew or change your plan by December 15, 2014.

We need your help to keep things moving in the right direction for young adults. What can your Mpowerment Project do to encourage discussion about the ACA/Obamacare?  Mpowerment Projects (MP) can bring awareness and information about enrolling in health insurance coverage to their participants. Let these helpful sites guide you.

The Affordable Care Act helps young adult Gay and Bi men living with HIV. Here are some of the many ways that Obamacare helps everyone living with HIV. 

The Affordable Care Act and PrEP (see below).

What are your reasons to #GetCovered?

"Everything you need to bring the Affordable Care Act to your community."

The Healthy Young America Playbook

via Young Invincibles 

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"How to make the ACA T'werk for you" via Young Black Gay Mens Leadership Initiative

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Got Covered with Haven Mpowerment Project | Springfield MO

Mpowerment Projects can host discussion events on the importance of health insurance coverage and why young Gay/Bi men can benefit from having insurance. Have your Core Group members discuss ideas on how to get more young men enrolled in health care. Download the Out2Enroll social media toolkit for more ideas (see below).

"Maybe you’re celebrating pride or participating in a community health fair? We have some materials that may be able to help you communicate the importance of being Out2Enroll."

Check out the Out2Enroll resources. 
Borrow from the Out2Enroll Campaigns.

Get Enrolled Holiday 2013 video 

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"Affordable health insurance is here. You might be able to get covered now." Get Covered America.

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Get Covered. Health Care dot Gov.

The men of Latinos D | Mpowerment New York City NY

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New Data: Millennials Are Better Off with Obamacare

"We've known for a long time that if you give Millennials options for quality, affordable health insurance, they're going to enroll. Uninsured young adults know that they're just one accident or illness away from a medical and economic catastrophe.

In our outreach efforts across the country, many young adults say they were locked into jobs before the ACA became law -- just to have health insurance. Now that there are many affordable health plan options through the marketplace, it's no surprise that so many young people are signing up." 

Out2Enroll.org

I want to go on PrEP but I don’t have health insurance or a doctor. What’s the first step I should take? via betablog.org 

"To get Truvada for PrEP, you will need a prescription from a medical provider, so your first step is to make an appointment at a health center or clinic that has primary care and/or sexual health services and accepts patients without insurance. In selecting a clinic, you may want to ask whether they have providers who are able to prescribe PrEP and are open to discussing PrEP with their patients. Doctors, nurse practitioners, and physician assistants are all qualified to write PrEP prescriptions.

If you are uninsured, now is a great time to get coverage. The Affordable Care Act (AKA “Obamacare”) requires that all US citizens have insurance. Depending on your income, you may be eligible for Medicaid, or you may be able to purchase insurance through an online marketplace. (In California, this marketplace is called Covered California; if you live outside of California, visit Healthcare.gov) Depending on your individual circumstances, you may be able to get insurance now, or may need to wait for the next enrollment period to open. When choosing a plan, you’ll want to consider whether Truvada for PrEP is covered by the plan and at what cost (i.e., what the co-pay is for Truvada).

Here is a step-by-step checklist of what you need to make your appointment.

1. If you are uninsured, visit CoveredCA.com (if you live in California) or Healthcare.gov (if you live outside of California) to learn more about getting coverage.
2. Make an appointment to get PrEP at a health center that has primary care/sexual health services and accepts patients without insurance (or accepts your insurance if you are insured).
3. Ask for a sexual health check-up and an evaluation for PrEP. Set up a reminder so you don’t miss the appointment.
4. Do your homework: Check out the CDC’s brochure “How to talk to your doctor about PrEP", PrEPfacts.org, My PrEP Experience blog and Project Inform for information and support. 

Accessing PrEP is a process. It may take a few weeks to months to process any required paperwork and have baseline lab tests performed prior to getting a prescription for PrEP."

Pedro and Gustavo | Generation L Mpowerment Chicago IL -  USCA 2014