The new Marketplace is supposed to open online as a shopping site for the uninsured tomorrow, but according to two new polls, plenty of people still don't know about them.
According to a survey by the Commonwealth Fund, almost 70 percent of uninsured people don't realize they will be able to shop on the online Marketplace for health coverage (at healthcare.gov) starting Tuesday.
According to a Kaiser Family Foundation Health Tracking Poll, just 15 percent of the general public could correctly identify Oct. 1 as the opening date for the Marketplace. Last week, Health News Florida introduced one Floridian who is likely to find affordable health insurance on the Marketplace but didn’t know that would be an option for her.
Meanwhile, as every media outlet in the nation is reporting, the federal government is likely to shut down at midnight tonight, as the calendar turns to Oct. 1, because of the rift between the political parties over the Affordable Care Act.
Florida’s members of Congress have been following predictable party lines: Republicans want to end funds to the law and won’t pass a funding measure that doesn’t strip them out, while Democrats are all about preserving them. Bay News 9 offers a line-up of who voted how.
Ironically, one of the things that won’t shut down if the funds run out is the Marketplace, which is expected to open on Tuesday barring glitches. Florida has more health plans to choose from than all but one other state, as Health News Florida reported.
What will be thinned are the number of federal employees available to supervise Medicare and Medicaid programs, ensure foods and drugs are safe, and the like. Social Security checks will still go out. For more information on the contingency plans, see the New York Times.
A number of Florida newspapers published impressive special sections to provide information to their readers, but most of them are behind paywalls after only a few visits, available only to subscribers after a few visits.
Here are some stories that should be more accessible:
- The Miami Herald offers a look at Florida Sen. Marco Rubio’s “Top 5 Obamacare Distortions.”
- Health care Q&A: Shopping the Marketplace, by the Tampa Tribune.
- Health care overhaul is here: What you need to know, from the Pensacola News Journal.
- What businesses need to know about the ACA, by AP and Pensacola News Journal.
Here are articles from the Tampa Bay Times, which require a subscription to read:
- Rising penalties are coming for many who remain uninsured.
- Health insurance for all? In Florida, 1 million will be left out.
- Profiles in coverage: Tampa Bay residents weigh health insurance options.
- Florida-built insurance exchange for those in gap struggles to get going.