How to get enrollment aid for Affordable Care Act plans

Oct. 27--Help is available for people looking for the Affordable Care Act health-insurance coverage options through the federal Health Insurance Marketplace.

You can get personalized help to sign up at one of AxessPointe's open enrollment fairs. No appointment is necessary.

Information you need when you are applying for coverage includes: your annual taxable household income, the names and addresses of all places of employment, ability to access a personal email account, the dates of birth and Social Security numbers of all household members, whether each person is applying for health coverage or not, and appropriate immigrant documents. Visit Healthcare.gov for additional information.

The free AxessPointe fairs are:

--Nov. 6 at Ohio Means Jobs Center, 1040 E. Tallmadge Ave. in Akron: 11 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.

--Nov. 10 at AxessPointe Kent, 143 Gougler Ave. in Kent: 8 a.m. to noon.

--Nov. 15 at Center of Hope, 1081 W. Main St. in Ravenna: 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

--Nov. 17 at AxessPointe Barberton, 390 Robinson Ave., Suite E: 8 a.m. to noon.

--Nov. 20 at AxessPointe Broadway, 676 S. Broadway in Akron, Suite 203: 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.

--Nov. 26 at Barberton Public Library, 602 W. Park Ave.: 2 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.

--Dec. 5 at Joy Park Community Center, 825 Fuller Ave. in Akron: 3 p.m. to 7 p.m.

--Dec. 8 at AxessPointe Arlington, 1400 S. Arlington St. in Akron, Suite 38: 8 a.m. to noon.

--Dec. 11 at Ohio Means Jobs Center, 1040 E. Tallmadge Ave. in Akron: 11 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.

If you can't attend one of the free fairs, you can call for a free one-on-one in-person appointment with a certified application counselor at an AxessPointe location (no phone enrollments are allowed). Here is how to make an appointment:

--For the Akron office at 1400 S. Arlington St., call 330-785-2044.

--For the Akron office at 676 S. Broadway, call 330-564-8660, ext. 1414.

--For the Barberton office at 390 Robinson Ave., call 330-564-2479.

--For the Kent office at 143 Gougler Ave, call 330-564-2478.

Two other agencies also have certified application counselors who can help any consumers apply for an ACA plan with in-person appointments.They are Asian Services in Action Inc.'s Akron office at 330-535-3263 and Lifecare Family Health & Dental Center in Canton at 330-454-2000

There may be some insurance brokers who can assist, but know that they are working on commission for private insurers.

In other parts of Ohio, call the marketplace at 800-318-2596 or go to https://localhelp.healthcare.gov to find local assistance.

You can apply online at www.healthcare.gov or by calling the federally funded marketplace at 800-318-2596. You can apply by phone 24/7 with the exception of maintenance occurring Saturday at midnight until Sunday at noon each week. There will be no maintenance shut-down the last weekend, Dec. 14 and 15.

Beacon Journal consumer columnist and medical reporter Betty Lin-Fisher can be reached at 330-996-3724 or [email protected]. Follow her @blinfisherABJ on Twitter or www.facebook.com/BettyLinFisherABJ and see all her stories at www.ohio.com/betty

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