There are just 3 days left to Get Covered! Enroll by Monday!
Dear Friend,
The deadline to enroll in health coverage for 2014 in the Tennessee Marketplace is Monday, March 31st – just 3 days from now. Don’t miss out on your chance to get covered! Keep reading to learn how.
Open Health Care Enrollment Closes Monday—Get Covered ASAP!
Listening to Memphis
Ensuring Memphians Get the Tax Refunds They Deserve
Fighting for the Unemployed
Demanding a Vote on Comprehensive Immigration Reform
United States Naval Academy Summer Programs
Make Sure to Claim Unclaimed Property
Helping Veterans Become Homeowners
Grant Announcements
Open Health Care Enrollment Closes Monday—Get Covered ASAP!
The open season deadline to enroll in health coverage for this year is fast approaching on Monday—just 3 days away! Just yesterday, President Obama announced that the Affordable Care Act’s health insurance marketplaces reached their nationwide goal of enrolling 6 million Americans. Reaching this milestone confirms that the Affordable Care Act is helping deliver high-quality, affordable health coverage to millions of Americans, but there are still too many uninsured Memphians. With just 3 days left before the HealthCare.gov open enrollment deadline, it is more important than ever that uninsured Memphians sign up and get covered right now.
Thanks to the President’s landmark Affordable Care Act, many who have been unable to afford quality coverage in the past are now eligible to enroll in Tennessee’s Health Insurance Marketplace. And, if you do not have health insurance coverage, you may also be eligible to save money on your health care premiums in the Marketplace—but you have to act by Monday to take advantage of the savings this year.
If you are on Medicare or your employer is offering qualified health insurance that you are enrolled in, you’re already covered and won’t need to enter the Marketplace for your health coverage. If you aren’t sure whether or not you should use the Marketplace to get insurance, call the Marketplace Hotline at 1 (800) 318-2596, visit www.HealthCare.gov, or call Tennessee’s navigator, Seedco, at (901) 528-8341. You can also call my office at (901) 544-4131 or the Marketplace Hotline to find out if TennCare (Tennessee’s Medicaid program) is a coverage option for you. If you are one of the millions of Americans who needs health insurance, you can sign up for coverage for 2014 until the open enrollment period closes on March 31st, 2014. Visit www.healthcare.gov today to look at your options.
If you have trouble accessing the website or would like in-person help, please do not hesitate to call the Marketplace Hotline at 1 (800) 318-2596 or schedule an appointment with Seedco Mid-South’s Affordable Care Act “Navigators” by calling (901) 528-8341. If you have any other questions, you should also feel free to call my office at (901) 544-4131.
On Monday, I hosted another telephone town hall with more than 6,000 Ninth District citizens to answer questions about the issues facing our district and our nation, including how to ensure that taxpayers take advantage of all the credits and deductions they are entitled to. We also discussed my “Building a Healthier Memphis” series of wellness events as well as my efforts to promote civil rights and protect our Constitutional right to vote.
Town hall meetings like Monday’s give citizens of the Ninth District like you another way to speak directly with me and share what’s really on your mind. I appreciated having this opportunity to hear your perspective on important issues and answer your questions regarding the fast-approaching HealthCare.gov open enrollment deadline. Regardless of the issue, your opinions and ideas help me move forward with my work in Congress.
If you would like to sign up to participate in my future telephone town halls, please email me through my website with your home phone number. Please enter a landline phone number, as I cannot call cell phones during telephone town halls.
Ensuring Memphians Get the Tax Refunds They Deserve
April 15th – the deadline to file your 2013 federal tax return – is just a few weeks away. As you prepare your return, I hope you won’t overlook the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) if you are eligible for it. It is an important credit that can give families a financial boost. But historically, eligible taxpayers in Memphis and Shelby County have not taken full advantage of the program. Last year alone, as much as $70 million in potential tax credits were left on the table by area taxpayers.
Memphians shouldn’t pay more than they owe, and they should receive every penny they deserve in refunds. This year, I helped open one of 15 new Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) sites that are now operating throughout Shelby County. The VITA sites are available to provide tax return guidance and advice free of charge to ensure that Memphians take full advantage of programs like the EITC and get the tax refund they are entitled to. A list of all VITA locations and their hours is available here, and I encourage you to find one near you to help ensure you get every penny you are owed.
This week, the Senate took a step forward to help extend unemployment insurance to Americans whose benefits expired at the end of the year because of Republican obstruction. I’m glad that the legislation is finally moving in the Senate, but very disappointed that Speaker John Boehner has indicated that he won’t even let the House vote on the legislation when the Senate sends it to us. I spoke with Ed Schultz on MSNBC’s The Ed Show just a few hours ago to discuss why this legislation is so important to struggling Memphians. You can watch my interview here.
Speaker Boehner shouldn’t make millions of out-of-work Americans—including more than 31,000 Tennesseans—wait another day for the unemployment benefits they need to keep a roof over their heads and put food on their tables. He should stop obstructing the Senate’s bipartisan bill and immediately let the House vote to extend this critical lifeline to people who have lost their jobs through no fault of their own.
Demanding a Vote on Comprehensive Immigration Reform
On Wednesday, I joined my Democratic colleagues in the House in demanding that Speaker Boehner allow the House to vote on the bipartisan immigration reform bill—but the Speaker wouldn’t even consider our request. According to the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office, our bill would reduce the deficit by $200 billion dollars in just one year and allow those living in the shadows of our society to pay taxes and more fully contribute to our economy and our nation. A majority of the House supports fixing out broken immigration system, but the Speaker still refuses to bring the bill up for a vote. You can watch my floor speech here. I will continue pushing to get a vote on this important legislation.
United States Naval Academy Summer Programs
Each year, the United States Naval Academy invites more than 3,000 students to Annapolis, Maryland, to participate in its summer programs. The Academy’s summer STEM program, which is now accepting applications here, gives rising 8th, 9th, 10th, and 11th graders the opportunity to learn from some of the best college professors in the country and work in world-class lab facilities. The Academy’s Summer Seminars gives rising 12th graders the opportunity to find out if they have what it takes to be midshipmen by allowing them to experience the rigorous academics, physical challenges, and student life at the Naval Academy. More information about the Summer Seminar and how to apply is available here. The deadline to apply for this summer’s program is March 31.
Make Sure to Claim Unclaimed Property
The State of Tennessee maintains a searchable database of unclaimed property, which can include bank accounts, stocks and dividends, wages, refunds, insurance payments, gift certificates, credit balances and overpayments, and a number of other things. There is no cost for accessing the database, and you may find that you are owed money or property. If you have not searched the database yet or if you haven’t searched in a while, you can visit https://www.claimittn.gov and see for yourself whether the state is holding any property or assets for you. And you may pass this information along to your friends and family as well!
Helping Veterans Become Homeowners
Last year, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs helped a record number of veterans obtain mortgage loans and become homeowners. In guaranteeing nearly 630,000 home loans, the VA’s Loan Guarantee program helped more veterans become homeowners or move to a new home than at any point in its 70-year history. Not only is this great news for veterans, but it also is another sign that our housing market is rebounding—and that is good news for everyone. The VA Loan Guarantee program has some of the lowest foreclosure rates around and, along with offering low interest rates, their loans do not require a down payment from first-time buyers. If you are a veteran looking to purchase a home, you can learn more about the program here.
I regularly release a list of grant announcements from federal agencies like the Department of Health and Human Services, the Environmental Protection Agency, the Department of Transportation, and others. These federal funding opportunities are available to faith-based and neighborhood associations, nonprofits and other community organizations in the Ninth District. The announcements are updated regularly on my website.
As always, I remain.
Most sincerely,
Steve Cohen
Member of Congress