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Floridians Face Health Reform

Leon County Judge John Cooper on June 30, 2022, in a screen grab from The Florida Channel.
Jay Conner/Tampa Tribune
/
The Florida Channel
Leon County Judge John Cooper on June 30, 2022, in a screen grab from The Florida Channel.

This week, we met Floridians who are coming to terms with major changes coming Jan. 1 from the Affordable Care Act: Insurers can no longer turn away people with health risks, and uninsured people above the poverty line will be required to find coverage.

A package of stories by Mary Shedden of the Tampa Tribune introduces readers to some of the people who are confused about what will happen, including retired nurse Anita Balch, small-business owner Angie Short and Taylor Dame, a young manager of a franchise restaurant. See 25% Can Tap Marketplace.

Shedden also writes about some of the people who have chronic illnesses and have not been able to find affordable health coverage, including small-businessman Bob Linde, owner of Acupuncture & Herbal Therapies in St. Petersburg. See Chronically Ill Count Days Until Jan. 1

And finally, the Tribune series looks at how the hullabaloo about the “Marketplace” -- the online shopping site for the uninsured -- has confused many Medicare beneficiaries and mistakenly think they are supposed to use it, too.  See Marketplace Isn't for Everyone.

Meanwhile, Stacey Singer of the Palm Beach Post writes about one of the little-known parts of the Affordable Care Act that could make life easier for Medicaid patients who have disabling, incurable diseases but yet have to fill out the same deluge of forms each year in order to keep their coverage. SeeLaw May Rescue Patients from Paperwork.

Originally founded in December 2006 as an independent grassroots publication dedicated to coverage of health issues in Florida, Health News Florida was acquired by WUSF Public Media in September 2012.