Many consumers will likely turn to their hemophilia treatment centers (HTCs) for information about health insurance coverage options. We are happy to announce that the National Hemophilia Foundation (NHF) and Patient Services, Inc. (PSI) have partnered to assist consumers with enrollment in the marketplaces by having PSI designated as a certified application counselor (CAC) organization to ease this transition. CACs are one of the three types of assisters created under the Affordable Care Act. CACs are tasked with providing consumers with impartial information about the full range of coverage options (marketplace, Medicaid or CHIP) without recommending a particular plan. They will also help people apply for coverage through a qualified health plan in the marketplace.
PSI obtained its designation from the federal government on September 30th and will begin applying for similar designation in states with either their own marketplace or separate certification processes. To date, there are applications pending in eight state-based marketplaces. As the designated CAC organization, PSI is providing this opportunity to HTC personnel who are interested in becoming CACs. This will ensure that HTC social workers and other staff can focus their time on obtaining any necessary training and meeting the needs of their patients. NHF will provide PSI with communications, advocacy, research and other necessary support. NHF believes that our community will be well served by PSI in this role.
