New State Web Site Explains Health Care Law
Posted by Judith Sterling
Nationwide
Leading Edge
Maryland Lt. Gov. Anthony G. Brown launched on March 23, the second anniversary of the signing of the federal health reform law, a new website designed to tell individuals and small businesses in the state what the law means to them.
The site – HealthReform.Maryland.gov – is more of the state’s ongoing efforts to prepare for the January 2014 introduction of state health exchanges under a key provision the federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. The site was launched as lawyers prepared to battle in the U.S. Supreme Court this week over the legality of the law, specifically its individual mandate, which forces every American to either buy health insurance or face a fine, starting in January 2014.
State officials said the main portion of the new website, “Health Care Reform & Me,” is broken down into three categories, families and individuals, seniors, and small businesses, “to provide straightforward access to the information most relevant to each user,” according to a statement from Brown.
Within each category, visitors can find a list of provisions and benefits already provided or that will soon be available as a result of health care reform. Each section also provides resources to help Marylanders who are looking for insurance options available today through state and federal programs.
Additional sections of the site include “What is Health Care Reform,” which provides basic background information about the Affordable Care Act as well as a timeline for when changes take effect, and “Maryland Moving Forward,” which provides updates on the state’s work to implement the PPAACA and details about the Health Care Reform Coordinating Council. Marylanders can also stay up-to-date on health care reform by signing up for email updates or following the Office of Health Care Reform on Twitter (@MDHealthReform).
Carolyn Quattrocki, executive director of Gov. Martin O’Malley’s Office of Health Care Reform said the health reform legislation enabled 51,868 adults up to age 26 in Maryland to obtain health coverage by staying on their parents’ health insurance plan and 52,243 Maryland seniors in the Medicare Part D “donut hole” to receive “automatic discounts on their prescriptions.”
