The end of the open enrollment period under the Affordable Care Act is less than a month away. In Austin, city leaders are pushing hard to get the word out.
At City Hall Thursday, some Austin City Council members reminded people they have until Feb. 15 to sign up.
"I just want to join my colleagues in this great group in getting the message out to folks that now is the time to do it," Austin Mayor Steve Adler says. "It’s easier than you think, and there’s more assistance available than you might think."
This year, the city is spending $300,000 combined on two local nonprofits – Foundation Communities and the Latino HealthCare Forum – that are helping people get enrolled through the healthcare.gov online marketplace.
City Council member Greg Casar says he especially wants to reach minorities.
"We need to realize we have a city that’s changing in demographics and that the city needs to be changing as well so that everybody could be educated about opportunities to get health care," Casar says.
Texas has the highest rate of uninsured people in the U.S. So far, almost 920,000 Texans have signed up for coverage through the federal health insurance marketplace.
