To the Editor:

In my role as an Affordable Care Act navigator, I have found out that some people in Hertford, Bertie, Gates and Northampton counties do not know that they can enroll in health coverage right now, before open enrollment starts Nov. 1.

Any of the following events can qualify an uninsured consumer to enroll in coverage outside of open enrollment: Moving outside of your coverage area, losing current health coverage (for example, by losing job-based coverage or turning 26 and losing your parent’s coverage), marriage or divorce, birth or adoption of a child, change in immigration status, problems or interruptions with your existing Affordable Care Act coverage, and other life-changing events.

I want to encourage uninsured people to check out their options, as they may also qualify for financial assistance to help them pay for monthly premiums. In the last open-enrollment period, nearly 90 percent of the 613,000 North Carolinians who enrolled in Affordable Care Act coverage got some form of financial help.

To schedule a free appointment with an enrollment expert in Hertford, Bertie, Gates and Northampton, please call 1-855-733-3711 (toll-free) or visit www.getcoveredamerica.org. We are here to help folks get the coverage they need.

Deanna Joyner
Legal Aid of NC, Inc.
Ahoskie