APLA Health & Wellness along with other community partners, released a guide for choosing a health plan through Covered California for people living with HIV and/or Hepatitis C (HCV) and people who are considering pre-exposure prophylaxis (PreP).
The guide explains important things to consider when choosing a plan and includes information about additional benefits that might be available to help pay for the cost of health insurance. The guide also includes an analysis of the availability of HIV, HCV, and PrEP drugs on each of the 10 plans’ drug formularies and the likely amounts people will have to pay for their medications.
Covered California open enrollment began November 15, 2014, and ends February 15, 2015.However, if you would like your coverage to start January 1, 2015, you will need to enroll by December 15, 2014, and make your first premium payment by the due date to initiate coverage. After open enrollment, you can only enroll through a special enrollment period, which occurs if you have a “qualifying life event” such as loss of a job, birth of a child, divorce, or loss of insurance. If you choose not to enroll and don’t have other comprehensive health insurance, you may be required to pay a tax penalty.
If you are living with HIV and/or HCV or considering PrEP, it is extremely important to understand all of your options before enrolling in a new health insurance plan through Covered California. This guide will help you choose a plan that best meets your individual health needs and budget. Whenever possible, you should also talk with a Covered California Certified Enrollment Counselor or Insurance Agent.
If you would like to meet with one of APLA or APLA Health & Wellness’ Certified Enrollment Counselors, please contact Jacqueline Perez: 213.201.1454, jperez@apla.org or Alba Escobar: 323.329.9926, aescobar@apla.org.
Read APLA Health & Wellness’ Covered CA Guide
Read APLA Health & Wellness’ Covered CA Formulary Analysis
