County Executive Urges Prince Georgians to “Get Covered Now”

November kicks off the open enrollment period for health insurance under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and Prince George’s County Executive Rushern L. Baker, III, urges all uninsured and underinsured residents who are 18 to 64 sign-up for coverage through the Affordable Care Act. The open enrollment period ends on December 15, 2018. To apply, visit www.marylandhealthconnection.gov or call 301-927-4500.

“Prince George’s County continues to make great strides in enrolling residents in health insurance,” said County Executive Rushern L. Baker, III. “From the time the Affordable Care Act began, we have reduced the number of uninsured residents from 15% to 9%. It is vitally important for every single person who is eligible to get covered and stay covered. Now is the time.”

Prince George’s County Health Connect, a program of the Department of Social Services, is recognized as one of the strongest in Maryland. Since 2013, the comprehensive program has partnered with government agencies, non-profit healthcare and community-based organizations, academic institutions, hospitals, clinics, and faith-based institutions resulting in the following:

  • Increases in the number of insured Prince George’s County residents. More than 240,000 have enrolled in Medicaid and the Maryland Children’s Health Program (MCHP), an increase of 33% since the Affordable Care Act implementation began. An additional 22,400 residents are enrolled into Qualified Health Plans (QHPs), the private coverage that provides subsidies for most families.
  • Increases in Health Connect enrollment assistance requests. More than 100,000 Prince George’s County residents have been provided in-person Health Connect enrollment assistance.
  • Increases in insurance coverage resulting in a decrease in the number of people who delay needed health care due to cost.
  • Increases in insurance coverage provides greater financial stability to families; and realizes significant savings in uncompensated hospital care.
  • Increases in growth and enrollment reduced long-standing inequities regarding access to affordable health coverage: African-American, Hispanic or Latino, and Asian-American residents had the largest gains in coverage.

While the federal government has eliminated the 2019 tax penalty for being without health coverage, it is important that residents get and maintain their coverage to reach their optimum level of health. All residents of Prince George’s County are encouraged to find out if they are eligible to achieve savings on their coverage. In person assistance is available in several locations across the County. To learn more visit www.pgchealthconnect.org/gethelp or call 301-927-4500.