Ahoskie, NC — The Roanoke
Chowan Community Health Center (RCCHC) will be holding an event titled “Come
Have Coffee With Us” that will help area citizens enroll for health care if
they have not already enrolled through the federal marketplace. The event
will be held on Friday, March 21 from 9:00am to 12:00 noon at the RCCHC Ahoskie
Comprehensive Care Center. Its purpose is to offer information about enrolling
for health insurance in the federal marketplace, and to provide assistance with
the online enrollment process. Six certified application counselors will be at
the event to assist with the application process. There is no charge to those
who come and no commitments to purchase health insurance through the
marketplace is required. “As an
active community health center, we consider it a significant responsibility to
inform the public of options regarding their health care,” said Holly Smith,
Patient Financial Services Director at RCCHC. Open
enrollment ends on March 31, so time is pressing for those who have yet to
enroll for health insurance. Once open enrollment concludes, those without
health insurance could be penalized by the federal government for failing to
enroll in a plan. “We want
our area citizens to be informed and be aware that they can get health
insurance and that we can help them through the process,” said Kim Schwartz,
CEO at RCCHC. “Those who may be ‘out of the loop’ concerning health insurance
can come to the event, get informed, and get enrolled while there. This is why
RCCHC is here, to better the health of our community.” Those who
do not sign up for health insurance by March 31 may not be able to apply again
for health insurance until open enrollment begins on November 15, 2014. Even
those who apply then, if they do not have insurance already, will not have
insurance before an effective date of January 1, 2015. No
appointment is necessary to attend the event. If you would like to check your
eligibility for a premium subsidy (lower premiums) and cost-sharing reductions
(lower co-pays and deductibles) while at the event, you will need to bring
verification of your income and information about your household size. The
event is free to the public. The
Ahoskie Comprehensive Care Center is located at 120 Health Center Dr in
Ahoskie. For more information about RCCHC and what it offers citizens of the
Roanoke-Chowan area, visit www.rcchc.org.