Obama to spotlight Calif. effort promoting ACA

President Barack Obama today will promote a California effort to educate Americans about the health reform law and insurance coverage enrollment that the administration hopes will serve as a model for other states.

In California on Thursday to attend events for the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, the president continued his trip in the Golden State and is expected to provide a statement about the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act at the Fairmont Hotel in San Jose around 9 a.m. Pacific Time Friday. Obama will highlight the work of a public-private partnership among the California Endowment, Cover California (the state's health insurance exchange set to launch next year), and three Spanish-speaking media companies—Impremedia, Telemundo Station Group and Univision—that began efforts this year to educate Californians about the law and help those who don't have insurance to enroll when open enrollment starts Oct. 1.

The administration reports that about 5.3 million Californians are estimated to be eligible for the insurance marketplaces, including about 1.19 million Latinos who will be eligible for subsidies to purchase coverage. And as the home to nearly 6 million uninsured—and also the largest state with the biggest insurance market—California is an important part of the administration's effort to make sure Americans get access to coverage.

“We're excited that he's out here in California and that he's part of this media announcement,” said Hilda Martinez, acting campaign manager for the ACA Outreach and Enrollment Campaign, of which the media partnership with the three media groups, Cover California and the California Endowment is one part. “The enrollment period for Covered California is in October and we need to get people aware that this is the law of the land, and they have a limited window to get coverage.” The enrollment period ends in March 2014.

Martinez said the California Endowment will provide $25 million over two years for the partnership. Addressing reporters Thursday in a conference call, a senior administration official said that this model represents the community-based effort that will be required to make the Affordable Care Act's implementation a success. Using TV, radio, digital, social and mobile media tools, the partnership is expected to reach nearly 100% of the target community for Hispanic families in California to encourage them to sign up and purchase the health plan that fits their healthcare needs and their budgets. The partnership has three phases—the current phase on awareness, the second phase this fall on education about health plan options, and, finally, the third phase on enrollment between October and next March.

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