Report Provides Insights from Consumer Assisters on Improving Affordable Care Act’s Next Open Enrollment

A new report from the Kaiser Family Foundation and Robert Wood Johnson Foundation captures insights from those who helped consumers navigate the Affordable Care Act’s first open enrollment period, including lessons for the second , which is set to start Nov. 15. “Taking Stock and Taking Steps: A Report from the Field after the First Year of Marketplace Consumer Assistance Under the ACA” draws on the experiences of 80 program leaders who participated in a roundtable discussion convened by the foundations in June.  The group talked about consumer education and engagement, options for improving consumer notices and technical support for assisters, ways to better help people make informed choices, and the need to continue assisting consumers after enrollment.

The new report builds on earlier work looking at the role of consumer assistance programs, including a Kaiser survey that found more than 28,000 staff and volunteers in marketplace assister programs helped an estimated 10.6 million people during the ACA’s first open enrollment period.