Officials and governments are struggling to provide the public with the information it needs about the marketplace.
State government, healthcare, and health insurance officials are facing a considerable struggle to provide consumers with the education that they need regarding the requirements of the Affordable Care Act and the way in which the exchanges will be used when they open in October of this year.
Millions of Americans will be using these marketplaces to shop for their coverage plans.
These plans will be necessary to conform to the individual mandate, which will become effective as of January 1, 2014. However, many uninsured Americans in every state are still not aware that they will need to purchase their health insurance plans and that these exchanges will be available to help them to do so online.
Studies are continuing to show that people don’t seem to understand their part in the health insurance exchanges.
Small businesses, families, and individuals will be able to use these health insurance exchanges to learn about, compare, and purchase the coverage they need by the start of next year. However, a number of surveys are saying that the message just isn’t getting through to the public. A study conducted by the Princeton Survey Research Association International has indicated that a tremendous 90 percent of Americans don’t realize that the marketplaces will be open to them in the fall.
Another survey, conducted by the Kaiser Family Foundation, has indicated that more than half of the people in the United States believe that they have not received adequate information to understand the way in which they will be impacted by the changes in the healthcare system. Among them, those who stand to benefit the most from the health insurance exchanges appear to be those who understand it the least.
That survey showed that 67 percent of people who do not have health insurance, and 68 percent who are in lower income brackets have revealed that they do not understand the personal impact that the Affordable Care Act will have on them. Governments and other officials are finding that they will likely need to redouble their awareness programs in order to ensure that residents know about the exchanges and how to use them to their best benefit.