Finding Affordable Coverage
Jennifer is a 26-year-old from Oviedo, Florida. She graduated from Lake Howell High School and the Central Florida School of Massage Therapy. She works as a massage therapist but her company, like many small businesses, doesn’t offer health insurance.
Until she turned 26, Jennifer was covered under her parents’ health insurance. Because of the Affordable Care Act, health insurance plans must cover dependents until their 26th birthday even if a child is no longer living with the parents.
“Working with a navigator was really important, because I had looked at the website on my own before but didn’t know what I was looking at or how to do what I needed.”
Jennifer has several medical conditions that require her to see a doctor and she “doesn’t want to pay a ridiculous amount of money” to do that. Having health insurance means being able to see a doctor without spending a fortune.
Because she qualifies for financial help from the Health Insurance Marketplace, Jennifer pays less than $30/month for her coverage. A visit to a primary care doctor has a $35 co-pay and if she needs to see a specialist, it costs $75. As with all Marketplace plans, an annual GYN exam plus a regular annual physical are FREE.
When she first looked at the Healthcare.gov website on her own, Jennifer didn’t feel she had any idea how to choose a plan. She was so glad when her mother encouraged her to find a navigator. The navigator met her at the library at a time convenient for her, explained how the Marketplace worked, helped her contact her doctors to see who was in the plan’s network, and provided resources to understand how to use her coverage. “It was really helpful to work with a navigator.”
Jennifer works full time but when she has a free time, she enjoys staying healthy by practicing yoga and reading.
