Part 1 of this series discussed the cost and discriminatory issues members of the LGBTQ+ community face when trying to seek healthcare services. This post shows how American Exchange’s enrollment specialists find affordable Federal marketplace insurance coverage that meets your specific physical and mental health needs. This includes identifying in-network healthcare providers who are sensitive to and experienced in delivering quality treatment to LGBTQ+ individuals and their families.
What Should You Look For In A Health Plan?
Individual and family health needs of LGBTQ+ members vary, so it’s important to identify what’s important to you, then see which plan offers the best coverage for those services. Here are some of the questions American Exchange’s sensitive, ACA-certified enrollment agents will ask you to make sure you are getting the most comprehensive, affordable health plan:
- How does the plan define family coverage?
- Is my partner covered if we are not married?
- If you are a same sex couple wishing to have children, does the plan have fertility specialists in its network?
- How much does the plan cover for fertility services?
- Does the plan have in-network mental health counselors who understand LGBTQ+ issues?
- Is pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) medication covered if I have or develop HIV?
- Does the plan provide smoking cessation services?
- Does the plan offer dietary counseling or other weight loss services?
American Exchange Can Help You, At No Cost To You
American Exchange has been helping members of the LGBTQ+ community, especially those living with HIV, enroll in affordable ACA plans that meet their specific healthcare needs. Our licensed, certified brokers have enrolled more than 60,000 individuals and families, including more than 17,000 Ryan White program members throughout the United States.
Our work with these public health programs enables us to closely monitor issues affecting the LGBTQ+ community, such as the impact of the new generic PrEP pill, Teva, versus the brand drug Truvada.
We Respect Who You Are
And we also know how to treat you with dignity and respect:
- We research specific plan terms to find the most affordable options that provide the most coverage of the services important to you and your family.
- We will call doctors to make sure they are skilled in treating LGBTQ+ members and have discreet protocols in place.
We Also Help Medicare-Eligible LGBTQ+ Members Enroll
More and more people with HIV are living longer, healthier lives. That means many are or will become eligible for Medicare when they turn 65 or when they have been receiving Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) for 2 years. If you are eligible for Medicare or will be in 3 months, American Exchange can help you find the right Medicare coverage to fit your needs at no cost to you.
Open Enrollment Ends August 15, So Act Today
During the Affordable Care Act (ACA) special open enrollment period available through August 15, 2021, eligible consumers are paying less to enroll in marketplace plans. According to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), 347,000 new consumers who enrolled between April 1 – May 31 selected plans for as little as $10 or less after advance premium tax credits (APTC) were applied.