En Español: Esta es una carta solicitando una donación para el trabajo que hace CCHCC. Si tiene preguntas sobre esta carta, o para mas información sobre donando a CCHCC, llame a (217) 352-6533 y pregunte por Chris o Adani.
Dear Friends,
Did you know that Champaign County Health Care Consumers (CCHCC) gets no federal or state funding to help community members enroll in health insurance? And yet, even without federal or state funding, CCHCC has been doing enrollment work for the Affordable Care Act’s Marketplace plans since the very beginning – October 2013. And our services are free!
CCHCC staff are federally Certified Application Counselors, and we provide our free services to help thousands of community members get, and keep, affordable health insurance. Besides ACA Marketplace plans, our staff also help with Medicare enrollment, Open Enrollment for Medicare Advantage and Part D plans, and Medicaid and Medicaid Managed Care plans.
How can we do this work without federal or state grants? The funding that supports CCHCC’s enrollment work comes from community support – including from individual contributions from people like you!
Please consider making a contribution to help support CCHCC’s ongoing work to enroll as many community members as possible in affordable health insurance. As the end of the year approaches, so does the end of the Open Enrollment periods for Medicare and the ACA Marketplace. But our enrollment work does not end when the Open Enrollment periods close. Community members need help year-round, when their life circumstances change – whether as a result of a change in jobs, moving, getting married, having a baby, or aging into Medicare – and CCHCC is here to help whenever they need us! And in turn, we need your help! Please consider making a financial contribution to support CCHCC’s work.
Experienced staff with highly-specialized skills are here to help year-round!
CCHCC’s staff are the most experienced enrollment workers in our community! Thanks to community support from people like you, CCHCC has been able to retain staff and build our expertise in health insurance enrollment. This work is complicated and can be difficult, but our staff have highly specialized skills and knowledge to help our community members enroll in health insurance. We help community members get covered during Open Enrollment, and beyond Open Enrollment – people need help year-round, when life circumstances change, and their health insurance options and needs change.
Doing enrollment work is not easy – it is time-consuming and very technical, but we don’t quit!
Health insurance enrollment work is increasingly complicated, as health insurance continues to change, and the Trump Administration has taken actions to sabotage the Affordable Care Act. Because of actions by the Trump Administration, the Marketplace Open Enrollment period has been cut in half – from 90 days to 45 days (and it is actually only 36 days, since the Marketplace – healthcare.gov – is “closed” on Sundays for “maintenance”). In addition, the Trump Administration has slashed the federal outreach budget that was used to help publicize Open Enrollment and the Marketplace. This means that CCHCC has to work even harder to help get the word out in our community, and to provide services to all the clients who need help with enrollment, in an even shorter period of time!
In addition to the federal changes affecting the Marketplace Open Enrollment, the State of Illinois has implemented Medicaid Managed Care – this means that not only do we need to help people apply for Medicaid, but then we need to help them again, later, to choose a Medicaid Managed Care plan.
Helping someone enroll in health insurance – whether it be Medicare, Medicare Advantage or Part D, a Marketplace plan, Medicaid, or a Medicaid Managed Care plan – can take anywhere from 45 minutes to 4 hours, depending on how complicated the person’s situation is.
CCHCC provides more than enrollment help – we help people get the health care they need.
But CCHCC does not just help people enroll in health insurance – we also help make sure that the individuals and families applying for health insurance coverage also gain access to the health care that they need. As part of our enrollment services, we help people get set up with “medical homes” where they can receive primary and preventive care, and referrals for specialty care. Our work gives our clients the gift of health.
Please consider making a contribution to help support CCHCC’s ongoing work to enroll as many community members as possible in affordable health insurance. We want to help enroll as many individuals and families as possible during Open Enrollment, and beyond – whenever they need us.
Thank you for your support!
We appreciate your financial support for our services. Together, we are building a stronger, healthier community – together, we are giving the gift of health!
Sincerely,
Claudia Lennhoff
Executive Director