Community health centers get federal grants to hire employees to help you shop for health insurance coverage

Kentucky’s online health insurance exchange, Kynect, opens Oct. 1, 2013, and most Kentuckians must have health insurance by January of next year or face tax penalties having it. To help you get health insurance if you don’t have it, the federal government is giving 20 of the state’s 21 health centers outreach and enrollment grants totaling $2.83 million.

The government estimates that the money will help 61,539 people learn about and enroll in new health insurance plans through the Kynect website, and that the health centers listed below will boost their local economies by hiring a total of 52 additional workers.

These recipients are among 1,159 health centers across the country getting a total of $150 million.

If you’re a Kentuckian shopping for insurance, you can use the Kynect website to see if you qualify for payment assistance, special discounts or tax credits to help cover the cost of the insurance.  You may qualify for insurance programs like Medicaid or the Kentucky Children’s Health Insurance Program, and the website can also be used to compare insurance plans.

As October draws nearer, there will be additional assistance for Kentuckians, such as people called “Kynectors” who can be reached by phone or online and help you gather more information about what type of coverage may be best for you and your family.  Check here for more information or here to read more about the federal grants.