June 2021
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,
Even though we have made great strides in reducing the number of COVID cases and getting community members vaccinated, we cannot pretend that the pandemic is over. Children under 12 are not yet able to get vaccinated and there are many adults who are not able to get vaccinated due to health conditions or obstacles. There are even more who are refusing to get vaccinated.
We must continue with caution, please keep wearing your mask indoors and talk to your friends and family about getting vaccinated—without judgement.
Pandemic challenges – we will continue to be cautious. CCHCC’s work to provide free services to community members, including health insurance enrollment and prescription assistance, is much harder now that we have to work remotely and practice social-distancing. We are committed to keeping our staff and clients safe. Providing direct services to consumers is more complicated and time-consuming, and requires more back and forth – whether over the phone, email, text, zoom, or regular mail – to get everything done. In addition, there is more to do beyond our regular scope of work! For example, more medically-fragile homeless individuals with complex health care situations need help with shelter and housing as they fall through the cracks of our current community resources. Also, community members need more information about, and help accessing the COVID-19 vaccines. We are sharing information about vaccine clinics and answering questions that folks have about getting vaccinated. All while helping our clients find affordable healthcare!
ACA Marketplace – New Open Enrollment Period Extended! President Joe Biden signed health care-related executive orders that, among other initiatives, have reopened the ACA Marketplace at HealthCare.gov [1] for a special enrollment period which began on Monday, February 15, 2021 and now goes through August 15, 2021. This means that Americans without health insurance will have a chance to enroll in private health insurance plans through the Marketplace (HealthCare.gov) [1] outside the normal November 1 through December 15 Open Enrollment period. This new open enrollment opportunity can offer many people – especially those who have dealt with unemployment or other changes among the COVID-19 pandemic, another chance to get health insurance.
And the American Rescue Act increased the subsidies that people can qualify for – even those who already have a Marketplace plan and a subsidy! If you previously tried to find coverage on the Health Insurance Marketplace, but did not qualify for subsidies, it might be worth it to check again. To benefit from these additional subsidies, you must redo your application to receive a new eligibility determination with the updated amount, otherwise you will receive your subsidy in the form of a tax credit when you file your taxes for 2021. If you need help completing an application, please contact us at CCHCC – we are here to help!
COVID-19 Testing and Vaccinations. Throughout the pandemic, CCHCC has been helping community members find out about COVID-19 resources, as well as where and when to go for testing. Since the vaccines have been available, CCHCC has been on the front lines of working with community members and the Champaign-Urbana Public Health District (CUPHD), to help people learn about vaccination opportunities and to sign up to get vaccinated. Our work on vaccination has focused mainly on reaching people who do not have easy access to the internet and therefore have not been able to easily sign up. This includes working with seniors and with low-income community members who do not have access to the internet and therefore do not receive timely information about getting scheduled for their vaccines. Now, so many walk-in clinics are being offered that the need to schedule online is diminishing, but we still need to share the updated information as it changes and in the appropriate language.
CCHCC is working to help people understand what the vaccine is, why it is important, and that it is accessible as well as address misinformation which somehow spreads much more quickly than truth.
CCHCC encourages all of our community members who are eligible for the vaccine (those age 12 and older) to get vaccinated. CUPHD has a walk-in clinic every Friday from 8:30am-4:00pm at 201 W. Kenyon Road, Champaign. You can also find vaccine clinic schedules and availability by going to the CUPHD website at www.c-uphd.org [2] or the Vaccine Finder website at www.vaccinefinder.org [3].
CCHCC’s 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.
Thank you for your support!
We appreciate your financial support for our services, and your help getting the word out to others about CCHCC. Together, we are working to help our community survive the pandemic, and building a stronger, healthier community – together, we are giving the gift of health!
Sincerely,
Claudia Lennhoff
Executive Director