person for Enroll America’s Pennsylvania operations. The nonprofit was founded in 2010 with the sole mission of spreading the word about the ACA, and is mainly funded by charitable organizations and individual donors. It focuses on a dozen states where Americans who lack health care are concentrated. “When people are armed with the information they need, they’re excited to take action,” Cusick says. “Many people still don’t understand how much financial help is available to help them pay for their plans, but they can’t get that information if a trusted source in their community doesn’t engage with them and begin the conversation.” For example, she says, 81 percent of Pennsylvanians who enrolled in a Marketplace plan last year received tax credits. “We bring consumers to the doorstep of enrollment,” she says. “Our partners have deep roots in the communities we serve, and working together allows us all to better reach the Pittsburgh community.” A $250,000 grant allowed one of Enroll America’s partners, the YWCA of Greater Pittsburgh, to train existing staff and hire three full-time navigators to go into Downtown, Homewood and the South Hills and focus on “vulnerable populations, such as women, African Americans and Latinos,” says Beth Heeb, chief operations officer of the YWCA. Other partners include the Consumer Health Coalition, Benefits Data Trust, the Hospital Council of Western Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania Health Access Network and Planned Parenthood of Western Pennsylvania (PPWP), which jointly received one $500,000 navigator grant. “I think Planned Parenthood is uniquely positioned because people know who we are and trust us,” says Kate Dickerson, a navigator for PPWP. “We work with a lot of uninsured patients and people who are on Select Plan or Medicaid.” The network of partners reaches even further when you add the connections these organizations have made with physical locations like CCAC and others, including the Carnegie libraries and the Jefferson Regional Foundation. Enroll America has even held sign-ups at the East Liberty busway stop. “We really just want to give our students an opportunity to get affordable health care,” says Antonio Quarterman, director of student life at CCAC’s South Campus. “CCAC serves all students. We don’t just serve the traditional student population.” Under the joint grant, the group of five nonprofits committed to reaching 43,000
people and actually enrolling nearly 3,000. Before the current open-enrollment period began, nearly 148,000 people, or 12 percent of the 1.2 million living in Allegheny County, were uninsured, according to numbers from Enroll America and Civis Analytics. According to the latest overall numbers from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, nearly 71,000 residents in the Pittsburgh Metropolitan Area — which spans nine counties — have enrolled this year. About 38,000 are from Allegheny County. The Pennsylvania Health Access Network says it’s receiving more than 500 calls each week to its helpline, especially regarding HealthyPA, former Gov. Tom Corbett’s controversial answer to Medicaid expansion. Its enrollment period opened in December and does not have a deadline. Under the program, Pennsylvanians whose income is 138 percent of federal poverty limit or lower qualify — meaning a monthly income of $1,342 for a single person or $1,809 for a couple. The program has caused a “massive amount of confusion,” says Erin Ninehouser of Pennsylvania Health Access Network. “A straightforward expansion in year one would’ve been the best solution.” Rather than expand Pennsylvania’s existing Medicaid program, Gov. Corbett, a vocal opponent of the ACA, added another program, Healthy PA, on top of it. Though it grants coverage to 600,000 Pennsylvanians who weren’t eligible under the ACA last year, it also has new conditions. For example, people who qualify must search for work, and if they miss a payment, they are locked out of coverage. “It’s helpful being around other navigators. We can help each other out with troubleshooting, especially right now with Healthy PA questions,” Kayla Berkey, a navigator with the Consumer Health Coalition, said in between helping people on weekday evening at the Carnegie Library in Oakland. “We can connect with other assisters to find out what’s not working so we can do advocacy to change it.” While campaigning last year, new Gov. Tom Wolf said he would adopt the federal Medicaid expansion. Last week, Kait Gillis, press secretary for Pennsylvania’s Department of Human Services, said the Wolf administration is working with the “appropriate parties to review Healthy PA.” But regardless of what plan is ultimately used in Pennsylvania, the goal does not change — to get people on an
RICK & KAREN SANTORUM
Bella’s Gift
Book Signing Thursday, February 12th, 7PM 926 Freeport Road Pittsburgh (412) 781-2321 In this moving tribute to their youngest daughter, Bella, the former senator from Pennsylvania and his wife share the miraculous story of Bella’s struggle to survive Trisomy 18, a rare life-threatening genetic disease.
“I WOULDN’T KNOW WHAT THE HECK I WAS DOING.”
Get more info and get to know your favorite writers at BN.COM/events All events subject to change, so please contact the store to confirm.
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