Tight Budget May Make It Tough to Master Health Benefit Exchange

While hundreds of thousands of New Jersey residents will be required to purchase health insurance by January 1 under the federal healthcare law, there will be limited funds available to help them compare policies and sort through options.

The federal government is providing $1.5 million to New Jersey to hire “navigators,” organizations that will assist residents in learning about and enrolling in the state health benefit exchange. That amount is less than 10 percent of the total recommended by New Jersey Policy Perspective, a nonprofit think tank that focuses on the needs of low- to middle-income residents.

The $1.5 million announced in the federal cooperative agreement to support navigators “will not be nearly enough,” said Raymond J. Castro, a senior policy analyst for the organization. He noted that Maryland plans to spend nearly $25 million on its outreach effort despite having many fewer uninsured.

However, state officials anticipate that residents will successfully enroll despite the limited funding. They cite the current success the state has in enrolling residents in Medicaid despite not having a separate budget for outreach.

Under the 2010 Affordable Care Act, every resident is required to purchase health insurance. Individuals and small employers will be able to buy insurance on the exchange, an online marketplace that will enable them to choose between different plans and learn whether they are eligible for federal subsidies.

New Jerseyans with income between 138 percent and 400 percent of the federal poverty line, currently $32,499 to $94,200 for a family of four, would be eligible for subsidies. 

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