WATAUGA Affordable Care Act & Health Insurance Marketplace: NC Resources

The United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) funded grant awards to Navigator grant applicants in Federally-facilitated and State Partnership Marketplaces.  Navigator grantees and their staff will serve as an in-person resource for Americans who want additional assistance in shopping for and enrolling in plans in the Health Insurance Marketplace beginning this fall.

North Carolina Community Care Networks

North Carolina Community Care Networks, Inc. are consortia that total more than 100 organizations who will work to inform consumers statewide, with particular focus in areas where there is a higher concentration of uninsured. These networks will be serving to reach out, inform, educate and help enroll North Carolinians, and include organizations in the legal rights, faith-based, agricultural, and aging communities.

Randolph Hospital, Incorporated

Randolph Hospital, Inc., will use Navigator funds to serve a three county area in North Carolina. Randolph Hospital plans on targeting specific geographic regions with high uninsured populations, and working with community organizations in those areas to leverage resources and reach the most people. Additionally, Randolph Hospital will work with hospital financial counselors that already work with uninsured hospital patients to inform those patients of their coverage options.

Mountain Projects, Inc.

Mountain Projects, Inc. is a non-profit Community Action Agency serving Haywood and Jackson counties in North Carolina. Mountain Projects plans on providing Navigator services to the seven western-most rural counties of North Carolina, including Haywood, Jackson, Macon, Swain, Graham, Clay, and Cherokee. They will leverage existing relationships in these rural communities with the goal of educating the uninsured and facilitating access to the new insurance options now available.

Alcohol/Drug Council of North Carolina

The Alcohol/Drug Council of North Carolina plans on using Navigator grant funds to establish Project Jumpstart, implemented by a consortium formed to provide specialized navigation services to people in recovery from mental illness and/or substance abuse. A majority of people working on Project Jumpstart will have personal experience with mental illness, an addictive disorder, and/or a chronic disease, and will draw on these experiences to reach out to and help enroll this target population in new coverage options.

North Carolina Institute of Medicine

The North Carolina Institute of Medicine (NCIOM) is an independent, quasi-state agency that was chartered by the North Carolina General Assembly in 1983 to provide balanced, nonpartisan information on issues of relevance to the health of North Carolina’s population.  The NCIOM convenes task forces, or working groups, of knowledgeable and interested individuals to study complex health issues facing the state in order to develop workable solutions to address these issues.

North Carolina Community Health Center Association

The North Carolina Community Health Center Association was created to advance the common mission of health centers across the state. NCCHCA represents the interests of North Carolina’s health centers to federal, state, and local agencies and officials. The Association also seeks support from foundations, corporations, and other private entities to increase access to primary health care for all North Carolinians.  Includes a directory of NC Community Health Centers.

North Carolina Association of Free Clinics

The North Carolina Association of Free Clinics, founded in 1998, is a private, nonprofit organization whose mission is serving the uninsured and underinsured in North Carolina.  Includes a directory of free clinics in North Carolina.

North Carolina Healthcare Association

NCHA promotes improved delivery of quality and affordable healthcare in North Carolina through leadership, advocacy, information, and education in its members' interest and for public benefit.  The above link takes you to their collection of resources about the insurance marketplace.

NC 2-1-1

2-1-1 is an easy to remember, three-digit telephone number that connects people with important community services to meet everyday needs and the immediate needs of people in crisis.  An online database is available on their website, and is searchable by topic or location.  Resources pertaining to the Affordable Care Act and the Health Insurance Marketplace will be added as that information becomes available.

These health centers received federal grant funds to assist in enrolling the uninsured in the new health care options made available by the Affordable Care Act.