Have you signed up for health insurance yet through the West Virginia Navigator program?
If you haven’t, you still have until Wednesday, Jan. 15, Jeremy Smith said.
Smith is director of the above-mentioned program, a grant-funded initiative that offers free enrollment assistance in the Marketplace to those who are uninsured.
Right now, that’s a staggering 100,000 West Virginians, give or take, who, as Smith said, are basically courting calamity on a daily basis.
The calamity part comes in all the zeros attached to numbers on hospital bills, he said.
And a sudden illness or accident, the director, could put any budget in intensive care, in any household going it alone.
Last week, more than 200 West Virginians braved the cold, snow and ice across the state to sign up for Medicare and other plans as part of “Cover WV Day,” which is hosted annually by the navigator program.
Wednesday, as Smith said, is the cutoff date to enroll for coverage this year.
“That’s why we need to get out to see us,” he said. “We can help.”
Not that you physically need to go anywhere, the director added. A call to the WV Navigator Program 304-356-5834 can get you started.
Just make sure have a list of your prescribed medications to make sure they are covered, he said, along with Social Security numbers and birth dates for everyone else in your house you’re planning to enroll.
Smith said he knows the cost of insurance can be a concern across the Mountain State, where more households than not are financially strapped.
However, he said, the Marketplace plans are based on projected income – and 97% of West Virginians qualify for financial assistance.
Some four out of five West Virginians wanting to enroll, the director said, can do so with a plan for $10 a month, or less.
But is cost is a concern, so too is Washington, D.C. cause-and-effect, he said.
His office of late has been talking to people who are wondering about the incoming Trump administration, and how that administration might address Medicare and the Affordable Care Act in coming weeks, months and years.
Smith’s advice? Don’t miss an opportunity, he said.
“We’re telling everyone to get signed up and hang tight,” he said.
