According
to reports, nearly 7.7 million Americans lost their job-sponsored
health insurance in June 2020 alone, and many others have lost their
coverage since then. In contrast, a relatively small number of those
people have signed up for COBRA or new health insurance, meaning that
millions of Americans are newly uninsured during the greatest health
crisis our country has ever seen. Public health analysts believe that
disparities like these could combine to create an even worse healthcare
crisis than we're already facing, and agree this is likely at least part
of the reasoning beyond Biden's executive order.
Health
insurance experts at Health Plan Options Today (a national health
insurance service company) who work directly with the uninsured have
given their take on Biden's executive order and whether they think it
can help the uninsured masses.
"The biggest concern folks seem to
have is that they can't afford health insurance- especially considering
today's financial condition- so they often see no way out", said
William G, a representative at Health Plan Options Today. "Of course,
this isn't the case, and we've been doing our best to educate people to
the contrary. Hopefully the President's executive order causes people to
take another look at health insurance so they can get covered".
Stephanie
A., another representative at Health Plan Options Today, says there are
other major issues that have shaped people's ideas of access to health
insurance, especially given the United States' unemployment rate: "Many
people have no idea how COBRA health insurance works, and a lot don't
even know it exists in the first place. They just think that if they
lose their job due to COVID, there are no other insurance options
available." Stephanie echoes William's optimism for Biden's Plan: "I
really hope that the people who lost their jobs and didn't take
advantage of COBRA use the special enrollment period to their
advantage."
Overall, there is generally support for Biden's executive order, especially considering 2020's historically short marketplace insurance
enrollment period and low enrollment numbers. Many people who missed
the original enrollment period will now have a second chance at
enrolling for ACA-based plans in 2021. Perhaps William G. summed it up
perfectly: "I think we can all agree that no matter what, a second
chance is always nice."
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About Health Plans Options
Today: HealthPlanOptionsToday helps people obtain health insurance
within their budget and needs, even outside of typical COBRA or ACA
enrollment periods. HealthPlanOptionsToday has served thousands of
customers across the entire U.S., and believes that people deserve
health insurance that truly serves their needs at a price they can
afford.
Contact: Health Plan Options Today
Email: info@healthplanoptionstoday.com
URL: HealthPlanOptionsToday.com
Phone: 18665420620