Vagina Talk: Let's Go Shopping For Health Insurance!

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Despite my obsession with health insurance, it was really only a few years ago that I realized it was a big deal. I was 22, a recent college grad and suddenly found myself with a part time job and no health insurance benefits. I did a little research on temporary plans and vividly remember seething at the computer screen as I saw the amount of money I'd have to pay for basic emergency care coverage. Little did I know, but in that moment my love affair with health insurance had begun. This obsession grew as I started working at a low cost community clinic and realized just how many people were un or underinsured. Every day I would witness a new story - a pre-existing condition that prevented them for getting health insurance, recently losing a job, a necessary prescription that wasn't covered in their plan or a high deductible that caused them to always pay out of pocket. But in the end it was always the same: people were forced to decide whether or not they could afford health care, causing many to forgo important preventative care and treatment. This shifted my whole world view. So much so, that when I went home to England for Christmas one year, I turned to my mother on the bus, and said in utter astonishment, "All of these people have health insurance just because they're British." At that moment, I really appreciated what it was like to live in a country where healthcare was viewed as a human right, and I knew I wanted that reality for both of my home countries.

That's why today is such an exciting day! As of today, October 1st 2013, Health Insurance Exchanges around the country are open for enrollment, inching us one step closer to an America where more people have access to health insurance. What are Health Insurance Exchanges you ask? Well, Health Insurance Exchanges are part of the Affordable Care Act. They're basically like a Travelocity/Expedia/Kayak for health insurance that individuals or small businesses can use to find the best insurance option for them. Over the next six months, individuals and small businesses will be able to start enrolling in health plans for 2014. If coverage is purchased by December 15th, health insurance benefits will begin January 1st, 2014!

Individuals will be eligible to buy insurance through these Health Insurance Exchanges if they aren't able to get insurance through their employer. The Exchanges will be a place where individuals can compare health plan prices, benefits and even learn whether they qualify for Medicaid or financial assistance. Since health insurance can be pricey, part of the Affordable Care Act involves tax credits to help make coverage more affordable. Tax credits will be available for people earning between the federal poverty level ($11,490/year for one individual) to four times that ($46,000/year for one individual). Subsidies are also available for individuals with incomes up to 250% of the poverty level ($29,000/year for one individual) to help cover the cost of copayments and deductibles. Individuals who earn up to 133% of the poverty level, will also now be available for Medicaid benefits for states that have expanded their Medicaid program.

In an ideal world, I wish that the Health Insurance Exchange was like a My Favorite Things Oprah episode, where we'd all just be sitting in a room screaming as Oprah yelled "And health insurance for you and you and YOU!" Unfortunately though, awesome things normally require us to put in a little bit of effort. But don't you worry because I've compiled a few resources to help make your health insurance shopping that much easier!

• HealthCare.gov - If you have questions, the best place to start looking for your answers is from the experts themselves. Health and Human Services have created a great website, with a nifty online tool to help you figure out your options. 
• Subsidy calculator: Want to know how much money you could save through Obamacare? Use this nifty calculator! 
• FAQs galore: The National Women's Law Center has an awesome list of FAQs that clearly explains all of the nitty gritty details of health insurance, Obamacare and almost all the logistics you'd want o know. 
• And if you're a visual/audio learner this one's for you!

Oh, and don't you worry. The Health Insurance Exchanges are still open today despite the government shutdown. Why the Republicans thought they could try for the 43rd time to repeal Obamacare and be successful is beyond me. In many ways today is a weird day. The shutdown is a blatant and sad reminder of how government sometimes doesn't work, but the launch of the Health Insurance Exchanges is proof of how government can really help their citizens. So let's celebrate the latter and remember that our right to healthcare is not a political bargaining chip. 

So there you have it friends. I wish you all a Happy October 1st and hope you celebrate this historic day. But don't forget - enrollment ends March 31st! 

P.S. This is my favorite tweet ever about the Affordable Care Act: 

Vagina Talk: Creepy Uncle Sam Spreading Lies About Obamacare

Have you seen the Creepy Uncle Sam video spreading lies about Obamacare through scare tactics? Did it make you want to scream and yell? Yeah, me too. 

If you're lucky enough to have not seen this video, it's a new ad campaign by Generation Opportunity to convince people to "opt out" of Obamacare. It follows a young female going to get an annual with her new insurance and a nurse judgmentally asks her about her signing up for Obamacare. If that isn't bad enough, once the woman is ready for her exam a creepy Uncle Sam comes in and... you get to the picture. Basically it's as unsubtle as you can be about not wanting the government in your exam room. 

This is wrong on so many levels. First of all, Obamacare is not about the government coming into your exam room or getting in-between you and your doctor. Doctors aren't suddenly going to be working for the government, and the government isn't going to be telling you what tests or procedures you can and cannot get. If anything, Obamacare has enacted provisions to make more preventative and routine tests covered by insurance. 

And more importantly, you don't "sign up for Obamacare." You sign up for health insurance. Not just any health insurance, but private health insurance, mostly through insurance carriers most people already use. This is the main component of Obamacare: increasing access to health insurance. Obamacare is HELPING people get insurance by providing cheaper options, offering subsidies and expanding Medicaid coverage. BIG DIFFERENCE. Last time I checked, being able to have health insurance is a good thing. 

If that isn't bad enough, the fact that they made this ad focus on the annual exam is so twisted. They are deliberately playing into the confusion surrounding forced restrictions on women's health to make it seem like Obamacare is the one mandating all these impositions. It's actually pretty ironic as Ilyse Hogue, President of NARAL sums up perfectly, "This ad is brought to you by the same people who force Uncle Sam between our legs when it comes to reproductive health. It's un-American to mandate forced ultrasounds, restrict abortion care, and deny contraception coverage while trying to trick students into forgoing Obamacare, which will help them get preventative care and end gender discrimination in insurance coverage."

Listen, I know Obamacare isn't perfect. Health insurance is still going to be expensive, and mandating health insurance is going to feel like a burden for some people and businesses. But the truth of the matter is that our healthcare system is broken. We spend far more on healthcare costs than any other developed country and we are embedded in an employer based health insurance system that makes our health benefits tied to market successes, while also leaving out large segments of the population who work part time, don't work, are retired, students or self-employed. For the time being, Obamacare is the best option we have to start trying to fix our broken system. 

It is time for health care in the United States to be seen as a human right, and not a privilege. In 2012, 84 million people in the United States were uninsured or underinsured. How can we call the United States one of the greatest nations on Earth, if we fail to provide a basic human right to so many of our citizens? The fact that starting January 1st, 2014 millions of people will be able to access health insurance and then go to the doctor and access necessary health care is amazing. So Creepy Uncle Sam, you may have your scare tactics but that doesn't deter my excitement and optimism for Obamacare. I cannot wait to celebrate the day someone tells me that it's their first time at the clinic because they now have health insurance thanks to Obamacare. What a wonderful thing!