Insurance Open Enrollment is Now Through Dec. 15. Be Persistent. Spread the Word.

The open enrollment period for the Affordable Care Act/ObamaCare started yesterday and continues through December 15. You may not have heard about it because the Trump Administration cut advertising by 90%. So please tell a friend. Send the URL to this article to anyone you know who needs health insurance.

Here are some things you need to know.

The site will shut down periodically: This is why I said be persistent. During open enrollment, the Trump Administration plans to shut down the website for registration for 12 hours nearly every Sunday. Don't give up. They're trying to discourage you from enrolling. Don't let them win.

Enroll at healthcare.gov: Here's the URL to enroll for insurance or change your plan.

If you lose your job: Once you lose insurance because you lost your job, you don't need to be in the open enrollment period. You'll have a special enrollment period that gives you an opportunity to get coverage other than COBRA if you want it.

Subsidies not cut for everyone: Even though the Trump Administration cut the subsidies available, causing many premiums to skyrocket, subsidies are still available for some, but only during open enrollment. If your income is 100% to 250% of the federal poverty level, you still get subsidies. Those income levels for 2018 are:

• $12,060 to $30,150 for an individual
• $24,600 to $61,500 for a family of four

Open enrollment is cut in half: Last year, open enrollment was 3 months. This year, it's only 6 weeks. Don't wait.

It hasn't been repealed: Although surveys show 10% of Americans already think the Affordable Care Act was repealed, it wasn't. Yet. However, 3.5 million more people are uninsured since Trump took over.

Help is available: To get free help, call 1-800-318-2596, or go to http://localhelp.healthcare.govor https://connector.getcoveredamerica.org. There's a Facebook page. A list of state working groups for signup is here. FAQs here. ACA signup project is here. Get America Covered is here. A toolkit to organize an open enrollment assistance group is here.

Just be aware that President Trump is doing everything he can to keep you from being insured. Fight to keep your healthcare. It's a matter of life and death.

If You Have A Preexisting Condition, Choose COBRA or ObamaCare Over Your Mortgage

It used to be that when people lost their jobs, there was only one way to keep insurance coverage, and that was COBRA. The only problem is that when you lose your job, you have to pick and choose what bills to pay and COBRA is crazy expensive. Most people had to go bare. If they had preexisting conditions, it was literally a matter of life and death because they would never get insurance again.

Then came the Affordable Care Act, which is the same as ObamaCare if you haven't already figured that out. The ACA allowed people who lost their jobs to get alternative insurance that was much cheaper than COBRA. Plus, it both banned insurance companies from denying coverage due to preexisting conditions and also from charging more to those with preexisting conditions. So, yes, insurance rates went up for those who were healthy, but it saved billions in government-subsidized healthcare. The reason being that anyone who was uninsured had to go to publicly funded hospitals for all their healthcare needs.

Since the election, I've been warning people who lose their jobs to make sure they elect either ACA or COBRA, and under no circumstances to lose coverage if they have a preexisting condition because I thought preexisting condition coverage would be lost when Trump and the Republicans started to gut the ACA.

I've been accused of being an alarmist, but that's exactly what the latest proposal would do. While it would still prohibit insurers from denying health insurance to those with preexisting conditions, it allows them to raise premiums. A recent study made these findings:

Based on our analysis, we estimate that individuals with even relatively mild pre-existing conditions would pay thousands of dollars above standard rates to obtain coverage. For example, because an individual with asthma costs an issuer 106 percent more than a healthy 40-year-old, she would face a premium surcharge of $4,340. The surcharge for diabetes would be $5,600 per year. Coverage could become prohibitively expensive for those in dire need of care: Insurers would charge about $17,320 more in premiums for pregnancy, $26,580 more for rheumatoid arthritis and other autoimmune disorders, and $142,650 more for patients with metastatic cancer.

Because there are few things that can bankrupt you as quickly as medical bills, if you lose your job and have to choose between paying your mortgage and paying for insurance, the wise decision might just be to pay for insurance. While your mortgage company may work with you to allow you time to catch up, losing your coverage if the Republicans manage to repeal preexisting condition coverage may literally kill you.

If you care about this, call your Congress member and Senator now and tell them to stop this folly before they kill a bunch of people.

Bye Bye Nursing Breaks: Preparing For The Trumpocalypse Part IV

If you are chomping at the bit to see the repeal of the Affordable Care Act, you probably don't know all that you are giving up. For instance, I bet you didn't realize that it was ObamaCare that brought us nursing breaks for moms.

That's right. It's the Fair Labor Standards Act which requires workplaces to give nursing moms reasonable breaks to express breast milk for a year after they give birth. The law also requires employers to provide a place, other than a restroom, shielded from view, free from intrusion from coworkers and the public, which may be used by an employee to express breast milk.

However, the amendment to the Fair Labor Standards Act that requires employers to do what basic human decency would provide anyhow was part of the Affordable Care Act.

Will Trump's repeal of the Affordable Care Act result in a repeal of this law? Right now Republicans are talking about wholesale repeal, and then maybe a grace period to find alternatives (although some want a repeal with no grace period).

In all the discussions about this repeal and what needs to be preserved, I have heard zero discussion about protecting nursing moms. Considering that Mr. Trump has called pregnancy an inconvenience to employers (then denied saying it, but he did say it), it seems unlikely that he gives one flying hoot about nursing moms in the workplace.

If you think this is an important part of the Affordable Care Act to preserve, it's time to write and call your members of Congress and Senators to tell them family values includes basic decency for new moms.

Preparing Yourself For The End of ObamaCare (Bracing for the Trumpocalypse Part I)

Well, Donald Trump is our President-elect. He has made a cascade of promises throughout the campaign, and many of them will affect the workplace. First up will be the repeal of the Affordable Care Act. That seems to be Republican priority number one. With control of the House, the Senate, the Presidency and soon the Supreme Court, they will get to do whatever they want for at least two years. So this is happening.

I'm going to write about all the laws/executive orders that will be affected by this so you can start to protect your family and yourself from economic disaster.

If you have a preexisting condition, it was ObamaCare that made it illegal to deny insurance coverage to you. That means when ObamaCare is appealed, you may never get insurance coverage again. If you are one of the 16.64 million Americans who are insured due to ObamaCare, you may lose that coverage. There has been some backpedaling such that maybe the preexisting condition provisions will stay when other provisions are repealed. We have no idea what, if anything, will replace the Affordable Care Act or if any of it will remain, and we have no idea how soon this may happen. I suggest preparing for repeal with zero replacement.

Here are some things you can do to help prepare yourself for the repeal of the Affordable Care Act, which could happen as early as January or February 2017:

1. Ask your insurance company what they plan to do. If ObamaCare is appealed, you may be dropped by your insurance plan. The first thing to do is ask what they plan to do. They may not even know what they plan to do yet if ACA is repealed, so stay vigilant. Read all those inserts they send you. Set a Google alert for your insurance company name and "Affordable Care Act."
2. Start looking for alternative plans. Find an insurance agent you trust who can point you to alternative plans if you lose coverage. Know which plan you will pick before you lose your insurance so you can switch quickly.
3. Encourage your employer to have an insurance plan. I know this seems like a long shot, but many employers have health insurance to keep good employees, to improve morale and also to improve attendance. Healthy employees show up more. 
4. Unionize. If your company won't provide insurance voluntarily, you have the right to discuss working conditions with coworkers and try to organize them. That includes the right to unionize. It may be time to unionize your workplace to protect yourselves against the upcoming war on workers.
5. Look for a job with insurance. Now might be a good time to find alternative employment that does have insurance if your job doesn't cover you.
6. Put money in your health care savings. Many employers offer a health savings account. If you have a preexisting condition and may not be able to keep insurance, this may be your best option for now. It won't stop the catastrophic loss that will occur if you are hospitalized, but it will help with regular doctor bills.
7. Switch to your spouse's insurance. If your spouse's employer has insurance coverage, now is the time to switch from your Affordable Care Act insurance.

The Trump win has already affected the way I advise clients. I used to advise people who lose their jobs to look at their Affordable Care Act options along with COBRA, because ACA is almost always cheaper than COBRA, which is crazy expensive. It was nice while it lasted, but now I'm telling people not to sign up for ACA and to elect COBRA if they can because ACA won't be around much longer.

This is literally a matter of life and death for many people. Next time, vote better.

My Readers Change The World! ObamaCare COBRA Gap Fixed

I wrote a few weeks ago about The Little-Known ObamaCare COBRA Catch-22. I thought this issue was so important that I asked AOL Jobs readers for help. I asked you to sign a petition I started to alert the President to this issue. I asked you to tell the President to close the gap. And you came through.

Not only did you sign the petition, but some of you took action to help. Members of the National Employment Lawyers association contacted the Department of Labor to ask for a fix. Forbes found out about this issue and wrote a piece about it. And it worked.

Read my article at AOL Jobs to find out how you can switch from COBRA to ACA until July 1 and how COBRA notices are changing. Thanks so much to everyone who helped with this important change.

The Little-Known Obamacare COBRA Catch-22

When I'm negotiating severance packages for employees, many times employers will offer to pay a month or more of COBRA payments. COBRA is the law that says employers have to let employees who lose their jobs stay on the company's insurance for up to 18 months as long as the employee pays 100% of the premium. Those premiums can be huge: $1,000 or more sometimes. Getting the employer to pick up some of the premiums can be a huge benefit.

Until now, that is.

Find out about the problem I found that occurs if you lose your job after open enrollment by reading my article at AOL Jobs.You have an important choice to make on health insurance. Find out before you enroll in COBRA and before you sign any severance agreement. You're stuck with the choice you make until the next open enrollment in November.

Then, if you think this is a serious problem, tell President Obama by signing the petition I created, which only needs 24 more signatures to go up on the public website (where it will have to gather 100,000 signatures by May 4, so time's a-wasting). Do it today.

Guest Post: Will Your Employer Miss The October 1 Deadline For Obamacare Notice?

By Associate Attorney who now chooses to be anonymous, Donna M. Ballman, P.A., Employee Advocacy Attorneys

October 1, 2013 is the first day employees can officially sign up for the Affordable Care Act, a/k/a “Obamacare.” Although you can sign up for Obamacare starting on this date, no one will actually get coverage until January 1, 2014. The gap between enrollment and enactment provides the government and insurance companies time to ease into the new program and make any necessary adjustments for a smoother transition. Open enrollment in the program does not end until late March 2014.

Your employer is supposed provide written notice to all existing employees and any new employees hired, beginning on October 1, 2013. A notice is timely issued if provided within 14 days of an employee’s start date.Your employer is probably going to miss this deadline.

Many small businesses reported that they were unaware of the notice requirements and feared potential risk to penalties. As a result, the Department of Labor (DOL) posted a notice on its website stating that employers cannot be fined for failing to provide the notice. Unfortunately, although the notice is a “requirement,” DOL stated, “If your company is covered by the Fair Labor Standards Act, it should provide a written notice to its employees about the Health Insurance Marketplace by October 1, 2013, but there is no fine or penalty under the law for failing to provide the notice.” [Donna's comment: on the other hand, if employees miss any deadline, just see what happens to them. Fair? Ha!]

The main focus of Obamacare is the establishment of the Health Insurance Martketplace (“Marketplace”), which is set to start on January 1, 2014. The Marketplace provides “one-stop shopping” for consumers to find and compare private health insurance options. Section 1512 of the law requires employers to provide employees notice of the coverage options available to them through the Marketplace. Your employer must provide the notice to each employee regardless of their health plan enrollment status or whether or not the employee works part-time or full-time. However, employers are not required to provide notice to dependents or those who may became eligible for coverage but who are not employees.

The notice to employees must: (1) inform you of the existence of the Marketplace, description of services provided by the Marketplace, and ways to contact the Marketplace for assistance; (2) inform you that if the employer plan’s share of the total allowed costs of benefits provided under the plan is less than 60% of such costs, you may be eligible for a premium assistance tax credit and cost sharing reduction; and (3) if you purchase a qualified health plan through the Marketplace, you may lose any employer contribution to any health benefits plan offered by the employer, and all or a portion of such contribution may be excludable from income for Federal income tax purposes.

DOL provides model notices on their website, which is worth looking at if you are considering exploring the Marketplace options, especially since your employer may not send you the notice. The website provides two model notices, one for employers who do not offer a health plan and another for those who do offer a health plan to some or all employees. Employers are not required to use the model notices, as long as the written notice they do provide meets the requirements discussed above.

It is worth looking into the Marketplace even if you are already covered, because you may find more affordable or more comprehensive coverage there.

The “New” Discrimination: Retaliation Based on Health Care Rights

Guest post by Associate Attorney who now chooses to be anonymous, Donna M. Ballman, P.A., Employee Advocacy Attorneys

If you don’t already know, the Affordable Care Act (“ACA”), a/k/a Obama Care, does not take effect all at once. (I say “if you don’t already know,” because a recent poll shows that 42% of Americans are unaware that Obama Care is currently the law of the land).

Title I of the Act, which is considered one of the most controversial parts of the Act, does not take effect until next year. Once it takes effect, employers may not make employment decisions based on an employee’s health care decisions. Employers will, of course, make decisions that impact employees negatively, because the ACA will increase employers’ costs and responsibilities associated with health care. This is why employees need to be aware of their new rights.

You have probably heard about the many employers who have started cutting employee hours to evade having to comply with Obama Care. If you’re one of them, you’re out of luck. The law doesn’t protect you yet.

Starting on January 1, 2014, an employer may not retaliate against you based upon your health care selections. Specifically, an employer cannot terminate, demote, discipline, intimidate, threaten, deny benefits or promotion, reduce pay or hours, blacklist, or fail to hire an employee based on the fact that the employee:

• Provided information relating to any violation of Title I of the ACA, or any act that he or she reasonably believed to be a violation of Title I of the ACA to the employer, the Federal Government, or the attorney general of a state;
• Testified, assisted, or participated in a proceeding concerning a violation of Title I of the ACA, or is about to do so; 
• Objected to or refused to participate in any activity that he or she reasonably believed to be in violation of Title I of the ACA; or 
• Received a credit under section 36B of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 or a cost sharing reduction under section 1402 of the ACA. 

If an employer retaliates against you for engaging in any of these activities after January 1, 2014, you may file a complaint with the Occupational Health and Safety Administration (“OSHA”). OSHA has a broad range of powers to help employees combat the “evildoer” employers, including the powers of investigation, enforcement, negotiation, settlement, and the ability to award damages. The employee’s first, and critical step, is to file a claim with OSHA within 180 days from the date of retaliation.

Unlike most employment discrimination cases, the standard for proving retaliation in these cases is much more employee-friendly. You only need to demonstrate you had a reasonable belief that the employer was retaliating against you. Further, you will only need to provide evidence that your health care decision was a factor in the retaliation, not the only factor in retaliation. Hopefully, employers will have a much more difficult time defending against these types of discrimination cases. With any luck, this will deter them from violating the ACA in the first place.

Check in with us next year for updates on this law and a breakdown of the inevitable lawsuits to follow its implementation in 2014.