The Aurora Coverage Assistance Network (ACAN) is lucky to have amazing partner organizations. Each week, we will highlight one of these partners and the individuals who work tirelessly to provide health coverage to Aurora.
This week, our focus is on the Small Business Majority. We are very fortunate to be partnering with the Small Business Majority because of their contributions in providing access to affordable healthcare. Below is an excerpt about Small Business Majority as an organization.
About Small Business Majority
Small Business Majority is a national small business advocacy organization, founded and run by small business owners to focus on solving the biggest problems facing America's 28 million small businesses today. We actively engage small business owners to drive smart public policy and get entrepreneurs the resources they need to thrive. We conduct extensive opinion and economic research and work with our rapidly growing network of 30,000+ small business owners across the country to ensure their voices are an integral part of the public policy debate. Learn more about us on Wikipedia and follow us on Twitter and Facebook.
Meet the Health Coverage Guide
Stephanie Salazar-Rodriguez
Tell me about your role within the Small Business Majority?
At Small Business Majority, I work with small business owners and the self-employed as a Health Coverage Guide. In this role, I build relationships with Colorado small business owners and educate them about the healthcare law’s impact on small firms and about the state’s new health insurance marketplace, Connect for Health Colorado. I provide education and outreach through in-person assistance, presentations and events, as well as enrollment assistance, with an emphasis on outreach to the Latino and American Indian communities.
What can Small Business Majority offer in terms of assistance with health coverage?
Small Business Majority provides healthcare education and outreach to small business owners on the Affordable Care Act, and health coverage assistance in person and through presentations and webinars. We also offer walk-in hours at Aurora Mental Health Center and special enrollment events.
What is the most rewarding part of being a Health Coverage Guide?
As a Health Coverage Guide, I’m able to interact one-on-one with small business owners and their employees. I get to help people enroll in health coverage for the first time, assist small business owners with finding more affordable coverage, and help small employers and the self-employed discover how the new tax credits can help bring down their health coverage costs.
Why is obtaining health coverage so important for small businesses (or individuals).
There can be many added benefits for small employers offering health insurance to their workers. Employers themselves may experience reduced costs in areas such as workers’ compensation, ease in recruiting and retaining workers or increased productivity due to reduced absenteeism. Workers and families of workers who were previously uninsured may experience greater access to medical care services and better health outcomes. In addition, society in general—and taxpayers especially—may benefit from a healthier citizenry and a reduction in the tax burden associated with uncompensated care provided to the uninsured.
However, it’s important for small business owners to get all the information they need about these new coverage options. By having a greater understanding of the healthcare law, small business owners can educate their employees about the various options available to them to purchase affordable health insurance: either through employer-sponsored health coverage or the individual marketplaces. Whether or not small businesses are providing coverage, their employees often look to them for information about healthcare options, and will do so even more so now that health coverage is required.
For business owners looking to enroll in coverage through the small business marketplace, or SHOP, it can help them make comparisons between different plan types, to find a plan that fits their budget and that’s right for their business and employees. In Colorado, it also offers employee choice, where employees can choose which carrier they’d like to use, instead of the business owner choosing for them. What’s more, small employers that do offer coverage through the marketplace may also be eligible for a tax credit of up to 50% of their premiums through the small business marketplace.
What health coverage story inspires you the most in regards to your work?
I worked with a young couple that owns a small
printing company and had been uninsured for several years due to the high costs
of insurance. Because their business is family owned, they shopped for insurance
through Connect for Health Colorado’s individual marketplace. They were
eligible to receive financial assistance through tax credits that enabled them
to purchase affordable and comprehensive health coverage through Connect for
Health Colorado. I was able to see firsthand how much it meant to them to be
able to afford coverage and have finally have access again to preventive
medical care.
What are key events/dates we should be aware of?
Open enrollment for the individual market opens on November 15, which means the self-employed will be able to start shopping for coverage for 2015 at that time. While the self-employed and small business workers who are not offered employer-sponsored health coverage must enroll by February 15, 2015 in order to have coverage for 2015, small businesses can enroll through SHOP at any time.
Additional Information
As a Health Coverage Guide, I can help answer questions regarding the enrollment process and how employers can comply with the healthcare law. Check out our Colorado outreach calendar to find an event in your area or to find our contact info.
To learn more about SHOP,
enrollment dates and coverage plans, entrepreneurs can also visit our Colorado Health Coverage
Guide, an online resource that contains a wealth of information for
small business owners regarding enrollment, the Affordable Care Act and the
healthcare system in general. The website details who’s eligible for coverage, how to choose a
health plan, how to enroll a business and employees, and what the marketplace
provides.
