Family Voices Indiana

By Emily McKinley, Health Information Specialist Open  enrollment for Marketplace plans is in full swing. Consumers have until March 31 to enroll in a qualified health plan unless they experience a qualifying event thereafter. As the enrollment period has unfolded, we’ve heard and experienced reports of the good, the bad, and the ugly. Here are some tips, tricks, and myths we’d like to share: ·           Open enrollment ends March 31. Consumers must purchase a plan by the 15 th  of the current month if they want coverage to be effective the first of the following month. In other words, plans purchased on or before February 15, will be effective March 1. ·           Consumers are allowed a three-month coverage gap during the year without incurring tax penalties. That said, Family Voices encourages consumers to carefully consider the risks associated with gaps in coverage, to include extreme financial consequences in the event the consumer requires medical care during the covera

Each month, Family Voices Indiana provides the families we serve with a summary of the month’s hottest items. If you missed us on Facebook in January, here is the latest! Family Voices: Check out our Family Voices Staff Spotlights! This month’s page featured specialists Cristy James, Heather Dane, and Elizabeth Ramirez-Mireles. Facebook fans liked our many inspirational quotes. Be sure to check out our page for a pick-me-up. Also, we encourage you to share our page with friends using the share or invite features! "A grandchild with special needs will change your life — but it’s up to you to determine if it will be a negative change or a positive one." Read the article here: http://www.grandparents.com/family-and-relationships/caring-for-children/special-needs-three-a-different-kind . We also have a guide for grandparents raising children with a disability: www.fvindiana.org/FactSheets/FS_Grandparents.pdf . "Although most often the mother is the prima

Family Voices Indiana shares the following announcement from the National Partnership: Twenty-one years ago today, the National Partnership achieved one of its greatest victories when the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) became the law of the land. We were the driving force behind that law, and we were right there in the Rose Garden with President Clinton when our nation took that historic step toward becoming a more healthy, fair and family friendly America. And we plan to keep fighting until our nation takes the next major step forward by passing paid family and medical leave…  so the millions of people who need leave but cannot afford to take it without pay can care for their families too. Please stand with the National Partnership today and sign our paid leave petition in support of the Family And Medical Insurance Leave (FAMILY) Act » When it comes to the critical, common sense solutions women and families need, we've got your back. With you by our side, we've bee

Family Voices Indiana shares the following announcement from DDRS: The Indiana Family and Social Services Administration’s Division of Disability and Rehabilitative  Services (DDRS) has received approval of the 3rd Amendment to the Family Supports Waiver  (FSW), IN.0387.R02.03, as well as the 5 th  Amendment to the Community Integration and  Habilitation Waiver (CIHW), IN.0378.R02.05, from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid  Services (CMS).    The Family Supports and the Community Integration and Habilitation waiver programs provide  Medicaid Home and Community Based Services (HCBS) through 1915(c) Waivers to participants  residing in a range of community settings as an alternative to care in an intermediate care  facility for persons with intellectual disabilities or related conditions.    Family Supports Waiver  Amendments to the FSW are approved, with an effective date of January 1, 2014, and include  the following changes:   The annual cap h