La Crosse meeting aims to get health insurance enrollment on track [La Crosse Tribune, Wis.]

Aug. 21--Pre-enrollment planning for insurance exchanges under the Affordable Care Act is "like driving a car down the road at 60 miles an hour while you're still building the car."

That's the observation of Mari Freiberg, executive director of Cashton-based Scenic Bluffs Community Health Centers, which received an $86,467 federal grant to help enroll uninsured people starting Oct. 1 for coverage beginning Jan. 1.

Scenic Bluffs, which serves La Crosse, Monroe and Vernon counties, will use the grant to help 1,620 people obtain coverage in the health care law's insurance marketplace, said Amy Schanhofer, the agency's operations director.

Another effort in the car-building process will take place Monday, when a host of public and private agencies meet in La Crosse to lay the groundwork to enroll nearly 31,000 uninsured Coulee Region residents.

The La Crosse County Health and Human Services Department is hosting the state-sponsored meeting from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. in the Lunda Center at Western Technical College.

The session is the kickoff for the Western Regional Enrollment Network, which includes La Crosse, Buffalo, Clark, Jackson, Monroe, Pepin, Trempealeau and Vernon counties.

"No one organization has the personnel, funds or resources to pull this off," La Crosse County Human Services Director Jason Witt said of the enrollment process.

"We're trying to cast a broad net to any organization who can be part of a network to see people face to face to help enroll and help get out the word," Witt said.

"We have a pretty good idea of where the resources are, but we are trying to develop a coordination of the resources," he said.

Among the potpourri of attendees will be representatives of the eight counties and their health departments, hospitals, senior service agencies, religious groups, insurance agencies and others.

The meeting is one of 10 scheduled statewide to prepare to enroll 600,000 across Wisconsinbetween Oct. 1 and March 31.

During the Southern Region meeting Tuesday in Middleton, many of the 60 representatives of Crawford, Grant, Green, Iowa, Jefferson, Lafayette and Rock counties who attended fretted about the enormity of the task.

Wisconsin Medicaid Director Brett Davis tried to allay such fears, saying many private groups will help carry the load.

Marlin Harms, a supervisor for the Iowa County Department of Social Services, said his biggest concern is not knowing what will happen when the enrollment period begins.

"We're gearing up, so hopefully we'll be OK," he said.

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