Those looking to purchase health insurance coverage from the North Carolina insurance exchange will be able to find additional help from navigators. These navigators are individuals trained in the various services that the exchange offers and can be instrumental in helping people find the coverage that is most appropriate for their situation. By law, navigators cannot work directly with insurance companies in order to avoid any conflict of interest. Instead, these people are associated with non-profit organizations.
Navigators working with Legal Aid of North Carolina will be making themselves available to consumers in the coming weeks. Consumers may choose to visit these navigators in person or contact them over the phone. The navigators will be able to answer questions that consumers may have about the state’s insurance exchange and the services it offers. They will also be able to help consumers enroll in the exchange and find the coverage that they are most interested in.
The Affordable Care Act is responsible for forming the navigator position. Because the exchange marketplaces can be somewhat complicated for consumers that are not familiar with health insurance, navigators are needed to help make the enrollment process easier. These navigators can also provide some insight into various provisions of the health care reform law, such as the financial subsidies that may be available to those purchasing insurance coverage. These subsidies are offered by the federal government and are meant to offset the cost of coverage, making it more available to a wider range of people.
Exchanges in some states are already finding significant success with their enrollment initiatives
The open enrollment period for all insurance exchanges in the United States began on November 15 of this year. Enrollment will run through February, 2015, providing consumers with enough time to find the coverage they want from their state’s exchange. Some exchanges have reported very strong results in terms of initial enrollment.