TALLAHASSEE, FL – On September 23rd members of the Florida Legislature will convene for the first legislative interim committee week prior to the 2014 legislative session and Open Enrollment will begin for the Affordable Care Act (ACA) Marketplace on October 1st. Close to 90 advocacy organizations have hit the ground running, joining forces once again through the Health Care for Florida Now Campaign to ensure that Floridians are aware of the upcoming changes to the state’s health care system through the ACA Marketplace.
We will be knocking on doors, making calls, lobbying legislators, informing Florida families about their health care options and gearing up for community health fairs to educate and assist people with enrollment in the Marketplace. The campaign will also continue advocating for passage of legislation allowing 1.2 million uninsured Floridians to gain access to health care through the expansion of Medicaid.
“It’s been a long time coming for 3.8 million uninsured Floridians to finally have access to healthcare and we are determined to walk over hot coals if necessary to ensure that our neighbors have the information they need to access coverage in the healthcare Marketplace,” Monica Russo, Executive Vice President of 1199 SEIU United Healthcare Workers East said. “The excitement we feel in communities across the state has renewed our resolve to press legislators to prioritize healthcare over ideology by expanding Medicaid to more than a million uninsured Floridians who earn too little to qualify for the Marketplace.”
Information on Health Care for Florida Now coalition partner events taking place this month can be found here. Information on many more events taking place across the southeast can be found here by entering your zip code for the event nearest to you. Look for more information on additional September and October events coming soon.
NOTE: Individuals with personal health care stories are available to be interviewed. Please call Damien Filer at 850-212-1858 to schedule interviews.
Health Care for Florida Now is a project of various advocacy organizations and businesses throughout the state that share the common goal of ensuring access to quality, affordable health care for all Floridians. Click here for a list of supporters of the expansion of Medicaid health care coverage.
www.healthcareforflorida.org
Press Advisory: September 12, 2013
Contact: Leah Barber-Heinz, 850-294-6087, leahb@floridachain.org
Damien Filer, 850-212-1858, dfiler@50plus1.com