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There Are Just 10 Days Left to Get Covered!

March 21, 2014
Enewsletters

Dear Friend,

The deadline to enroll in health coverage for 2014 in the Tennessee Marketplace is just 10 days away and I will be hosting a telephone town hall on Monday evening. Keep reading to learn about what happened this week and how you can get covered.

Join My Telephone Town Hall on Monday, March 24th
Don’t Forget to Get Covered by March 31st
Helping Memphis Ministers Get the Word Out about the Affordable Care Act
Protecting the HOPE Scholarship for Tennessee Students
Ensuring Memphians Get the Tax Refunds They Deserve
Meeting with Young Memphis Professionals
Reducing Homelessness in Memphis
Improving Trade and Passing Comprehensive Immigration Reform
United States Naval Academy Summer Programs
Make Sure to Claim Unclaimed Property
VA Rolls Out Secure Veteran Health ID Cards

Join My Telephone Town Hall on Monday, March 24th

On Monday evening at 6:25PM CT I will host a telephone town hall to answer your questions and discuss a variety of topics including what Memphians can do to better take advantage of the Affordable Care Act before this year’s enrollment deadline on March 31st. If you would like to participate in this telephone town hall on Monday, March 24th, please fill out the form here with your home phone number – unfortunately, we are unable to call cell phones.

Don’t Forget to Get Covered by March 31st

The open season deadline to enroll in health coverage for this year is March 31st—just 10 days away. All Memphians should have quality health insurance and the President’s landmark Affordable Care Act is making affordable, high-quality coverage available to millions of Americans. Thanks to the law, many who have been unable to afford quality coverage in the past are now eligible to enroll in Tennessee’s Health Insurance Marketplace. And luckily, 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 in the next 10 days 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 prefer not to enroll online, please do not hesitate to call the Marketplace Hotline at 1 (800) 318-2596 or visit the Affordable Care Act “Navigators” at Seedco's Mid-South office for in-person assistance. Their office is located at 22 North Front Street, Suite 900. Seedco can be reached by phone at (901) 528-8341 as well, and if you have any other questions, you should also feel free to call my office at (901) 544-4131.

Helping Memphis Ministers Get the Word Out about the Affordable Care Act

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This morning, I hosted a meeting with Memphis-area ministers to discuss what can be done to reduce the racial disparity in Memphis breast cancer outcomes and how they can help their congregations and their communities get health insurance coverage by the March 31st open season enrollment deadline. Acacia Bamberg Salatti, the Acting Director of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Center for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships, also joined us at my meeting.

We also discussed how one of the vital parts of the Affordable Care Act was expanding Medicaid, but Governor Haslam has decided not to take advantage of this expansion. That has left thousands of Memphians without insurance—more than 30,000, or about 30% of uninsured adults in the area, according to the Urban Institute. The Governor is costing the state money and countless people their lives. I hope he’ll make the right decision and expand Medicaid. As I have expressed personally to him, I will be happy to work together to make that happen.

Also, please don’t forget that—for the next 10 days—you can still enroll online at HealthCare.gov or by calling the 24-hour hotline at 1 (800) 318-2596.

Protecting the HOPE Scholarship for Tennessee Students

This week, Governor Haslam continued to push his ill-advised “Tennessee Promise” plan – a plan that siphons $300 million from HOPE Scholarships – through the General Assembly without allowing adequate time for public consideration and comment.

When the HOPE Scholarship program was created, it was only after the Tennessee General Assembly heard testimony and recommendations from educators and fiscal experts. Legislators in the House and the Senate should be very careful with any plan that dismantles one of the most prominent and successful programs that the General Assembly has ever created. Before moving forward, the Governor’s ‘Tennessee Promise’ program needs to go to a study committee that hears from the experts.

Since its creation, the HOPE Scholarship’s value has diminished as tuition has increased—and this plan will cut the scholarships even further. All future lottery revenue gains will flow to the Governor’s free-tuition, no-standards community college program, and the HOPE Scholarship will fade into irrelevance when it should be growing to match the rising costs of attending college. This is especially true when we need to be doing everything we can to decrease the student loan debt burden on young adults.

It is wrong to cut lottery scholarships to create a massive new government program, and it is wrong to siphon $300 million meant to strengthen HOPE Scholarships for the governor’s pet project. Doing so will sentence HOPE Scholarships to a slow and certain death. Any changes to lottery scholarships should be based on expert recommendations and evidence—not politics.

Over the weekend, I wrote a column in the Tennessean about why the “Promise” should be studied further—you can read it here. When the experts have weighed in, I am confident that the General Assembly will find that the best use of these funds would be to strengthen HOPE by extending more benefits to middle-class and low-income students and keeping them here in Tennessee.

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.

Meeting with Young Memphis Professionals

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I had the opportunity this week to meet with young Memphians at my Young Professionals Roundtable. I was glad to have the opportunity to hear their perspectives about the challenges facing our city and our nation including how we can work to reduce the racial disparity in breast cancer outcomes, reform our nation’s outdated criminal drug laws that arrest four times as many African Americans as Caucasians, protect the HOPE Scholarship for students as well as otherwise address mounting student loan debt, and several other issues.

Reducing Homelessness in Memphis

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Yesterday, I joined several local officials including Mayor A C Wharton and Community Alliance for the Homeless Executive Director Katie Kitchin in highlighting two consecutive years of Memphis-area homelessness drops. According to the Alliance’s annual “Point In Time” survey, homelessness in Shelby County is down 21% overall since 2012, while family homelessness also dropped 30% and chronic homelessness fell by 39% over the last two years.

This is good news for our city and it marks a major step forward in proving that we are committed to reducing homelessness. A country as wealthy as ours should care for those who are less fortunate. Although we are still recovering from the Great Recession, we must continue to focus substantial resources towards eliminating homelessness and do all that we can to provide adequate shelter for those who need it. Most of the programs that help in the fight to reduce homelessness in Shelby County are almost entirely funded by federal dollars, and I will continue to support legislation and funding to assist those who are less fortunate.

Improving Trade and Passing Comprehensive Immigration Reform

This week, I spoke at the National Hispanic Professional Organization’s monthly meeting about the need to pass comprehensive immigration reform and increase trade with Mexico and South American nations. They are important trading partners for our country and I will continue doing all that I can to improve trade relations with them to help our economy.

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.

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!

VA Rolls Out Secure Veteran Health ID Cards

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) recently announced the phased roll out of newly designed, more secure Veteran Health Identification Cards. The new cards are distinguished by additional security features and will have a different look and feel.

Similar to a typical health insurance card, the VHIC displays the veteran’s Member ID, a new unique identifier, as well as a Plan ID, reflecting the veteran’s enrollment in VA health care. The card replaces the Veteran Identification Card (VIC), which was introduced in 2004. As part of a phased rollout, the card will only be offered to newly enrolled and other veterans who have not been issued a VIC. In early April, the VA will begin a three month effort to automatically issue the more secure VHIC to current VIC cardholders. The VA recommends veterans safeguard their VIC as they would a credit card, and cut up or shred the card once it is replaced. While not required to receive VA health care, all enrolled Veterans are encouraged to get a VHIC.

Enrolled veterans can get more information about the VHIC by visiting their VA medical facility enrollment coordinator or the website www.va.gov/healthbenefits/vhic, calling 1-877-222-VETS (8387) or visiting their local VA health care facility. Veterans who are not enrolled in the VA health care system can apply for enrollment at any time by visiting www.va.gov/healthbenefits, calling 1-877-222-VETS (8387) or visiting their local VA health care facility.

As always, I remain.
Most sincerely,
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Steve Cohen
Member of Congress

Issues:9th DistrictEducationHealth CareMemphisShelby CountyVeterans' Affairs