DENVER – Connect for Health Colorado, the health-insurance marketplace created under the Affordable Care Act, set a new single-day record when it opened for business getting people signed up for health coverage starting in the new year.
But according to Jenny Santos, a health-coverage guide with Servicios de la Raza, many Coloradans don’t have the first idea about where to start from selecting the right plan to deciphering the insurance terminology.
“Most individuals are ready for the enrollment process,” Santos says. “They just need someone to assist them, because it can be overwhelming.”
Santos says having free access to organizations like hers, which can help people evaluate the plans available and get through the general “red tape” of the enrollment process, can make the difference between access to health care and being left out in the cold.
The road to coverage can be particularly challenging, according to Santos, for people who have spent years outside the health-care system, looking in.
To get coverage by Feb. 1, people need to sign up by Jan. 15. She says Coloradans who are eligible for no-cost or low-cost coverage have no deadline, and can apply year-round. In the first month of open enrollment, more than 135,000 Coloradans signed up.
