Although young adults have seen the sharpest drop
in uninsured rates since the implementation of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), millions of millennials still have not obtained
insurance.
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has launched
a campaign aimed at these young adults.
Using digital platforms, the agency hopes to raise awareness among millennials about
health care plans and options that help cover the cost of obtaining health
insurance.
The campaign launch was timed to coincide with the Nov. 1 start of
the fourth open enrollment period for the health insurance
exchanges established by the ACA. CMS plans to connect with millennials through
social media outreach, improvements in the HealthCare.gov website and app and
digital marketing on sites such as twitch.tv, a video game-focused streaming
platform that attracts millions of viewers from the under-insured, 18–34-year-old
demographic.
In addition, as part of the agency’s Mobile 2.0 initiative, the HealthCare.gov
app will be updated and streamlined to make comparison
shopping among health plans on mobile devices easier and less time-consuming.
During the 2017 enrollment periods, CMS will also conduct a social
media campaign that reaches young people through
Facebook, Twitter and Tumblr, using the hashtag #HealthyAdulting. Various health and advocacy
associations—including Planned
Parenthood, National Action Network, March of Dimes, American Hospital
Association and Autism Speaks—will
feature social media posts and discussions as part of the campaign.
Other federal departments are also contributing
to the effort. The Department of Defense will integrate information about the
Health Insurance Marketplace in its programs for service members transitioning
back to civilian life. HealthCare.gov will work with the Children’s Health
Insurance Program (CHIP) to better inform CHIP applicants who don’t qualify and
teenagers aging out of the program about enrolling in health exchange plans.
Additionally, the IRS will reach out to uninsured people who paid the
individual responsibility penalty or claimed an exemption from it. Young people
are over-represented in these groups.