Affordable Care Act and Libraries

At the American Library Conference last week, it was announced that public libraries will be part of the effort to get information and crucial computer time to the millions of uninsured Americans who need to get coverage under law.  The Affordable Care Act requires certain employers with at least 50 full-time employees to offer health insurance coverage to its full-time employees (and their dependents) that meets certain minimum standards or to make Employer Shared Responsibility Payments.

The initiative starts on October 1st when people without health coverage will start shopping for insurance online.  Coverage can start as soon as January 1, 2014.

In the meantime, there are some articles that are available at: http://blogs.wsj.com/washwire/2013/07/01/libraries-enlisted-to-publicize-health-insurance-options/
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/07/01/obamacare-libraries_n_3529849.html

In addition, the federal website is already up at https://www.healthcare.gov/ and the key features of the Affordable Care Act are available at http://www.hhs.gov/healthcare/facts/timeline/timeline-text.html 


The Institute of Museum and Library Services is working with OCLC to develop an online toolkit and training webinars for librarians.  I'll post this information when available.