By Diana Pando
Getting health care insurance can be confusing if you don’t understand the process, but not getting it can prove costly. Imagine having a medical emergency and not having health insurance to go to the hospital. For years, that has been the reality for many individuals and families. Today, there is an opportunity to get health insurance through the Affordable Care Act. Throughout Chicago there are bilingual enrollment workshops being held to help communities navigate the application process.
The process isn’t perfect. According to a Chicago Tribune Article by Kevin B. O’Reilly, “Focus groups conducted with 241 Illinois immigrants, most of them Latino, found that 40% listed language as a barrier to getting coverage. Fifteen percent said understanding what paperwork to submit was a challenge, and 10% named confusion about eligibility because of their legal status, the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights reported in May.”
However, enrolling for healthcare insurance doesn’t have to be difficult. The Resurrection Project is doing outreach in the Latino community and working with partner organizations to make sure individuals and families sign up and get access to the medical coverage they need.
Luis Moises Guevera enrolled at the last workshop and said, “I enrolled because it’s important to have medical insurance. The insurance covers services that sometimes Latinos ignore and we need to have it not just in an emergency but to get regular checkups and make sure we are healthy. The Latino community doesn’t have the information to get medical insurance or is too timid to ask how to get access to it and the organizations here are helping people figure it out.”
According to Get Covered IL, this area is the highest uninsured region in the entire state of Illinois, and Latinos are the highest uninsured group.
That is why the enrollment workshops are also done in Spanish so that individuals can make informed decisions about navigating the healthcare system. The bilingual workshops are also helping to clear up the misconceptions about the Affordable Care Act.
“Misconceptions about ACA that I come across are that it’s too expensive and doesn’t work or the fines are low so they would rather pay the fines the first year,” says Lupe Raymundo, who is part of TRP’s community outreach team. Her role is to screen people for eligibility, answer questions, and find enrollment locations and certified navigator counselors closest to individuals.
Some of the changes people will notice with the Affordable Care Act include:

• Prevention care with no co-pay
• They cannot be denied for pre-existing conditions
• Gender no longer influences insurance coverage
• No more life time limits
• Tax credit/financial assistance is available

Organizers hope people take advantage of these free enrollment assistance workshops.  According to Salvador Cerna, Regional Outreach Coordinator for Get Covered IL, “What’s great is people are starting to find out that enrollment assistance exists. TRP is doing a great job working in partnership with the Puerto Rican Cultural Center, Heartland Alliance, Alivio Medical Center, El Valor, Pilsen Wellness, Mujeres En Acción, and they are all here to help because who better knows the community than these organizations.”

Upcoming Workshops:

Febuary 16, March 2, 16, and 30
10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.
La Casa Student Resource Center
1815 S. Paulina Street
Chicago, IL 60608
What to bring if you plan to enroll:

• Social Security Number (or document numbers for immigrants)
• Employer and income information (pay stubs or W2 Forms)
• Policy numbers for any current health insurance plans covering members of your household
• Proof of Illinois Residency / Household information (who lives with you)

Questions on this workshop, future citizenship workshops, or volunteering? Call Lupe Raymundo at 312-666-5476.

Return to Nueva Vida February 2014 here.