SJSU students trained as Certified California Covered Educators are organizing an on-campus effort to help everyone understand the rights, responsibilities and opportunities afforded by the Affordable Care Act (Covered California image).
Need help with the new health insurance law?
Get your questions answered in person at the on-campus Affordable Care Act Q & A Information Sessions Oct. 22-29.
“It is important to understand changes that will directly affect you,” said Van Nguyen, ’15 Public Health, who will assist as a Certified Covered California Educator.
Covered California is a new online marketplace offering affordable, quality health insurance open to all state residents, including SJSU students, staff members and their families.
The informational sessions will be held in Engineering 189 at 11 and 11:45 a.m. Oct. 22; 3:10 and 3:45 p.m. Oct. 23; 1:45 and 2:20 p.m. Oct. 24; and 6:30 and 7:05 p.m. Oct. 29.
This series is open to all SJSU community members and is being offered by the California State University Health Insurance Education Project.
San Jose State is one of 16 campuses coordinating the project, which provides hands-on experience to public health and social work students acting as Covered California educators on all 23 campuses.
Keri Simmons, ’14 Public Health, joined the campaign to correct what she sees as a troubling misconception of attitudes toward health care.
It’s not that college students think they are “young and invincible,” so they do not need health insurance.
“We are responsible, but just often times broke,” she said, a situation she understands as a full-time graduate student.
“The CSU Health Insurance Education Project is … an opportunity to challenge the ‘young invincible’ notion by decreasing the number of uninsured young adults. In doing so, we will shift the perception of my generation as ‘young and invincible’ to ‘young and covered.’”
Informational sessions sponsors include the Department of Health Science and Recreation, School of Social Work, Accessible Education Center, College of Applied Sciences and the Arts, Student Health Center, Associated Students of SJSU, the Office of the President, CSU Health Insurance Education Project and California State Student Association.
Learn more about the Affordable Care Act at HealthCare.gov.