Certified Navigators On Site and Ready to Help Marylanders

BALTIMORE (Monday, Nov. 24, 2014)—Marylanders in and around Anne Arundel County who would like assistance enrolling in a Qualified Health Plan or Medicaid now have a convenient place to go. HealthCare Access Maryland (HCAM), a nonprofit agency contracted by the state to help residents navigate the health insurance marketplace, opened a storefront in the Pasadena Plaza Shopping Center at 8159A Ritchie Highway (next to Dollar Tree). Four Certified Navigators are on site Monday through Saturday to answer questions about the marketplace and to help consumers get health insurance. The location is open 10–7 weekdays and 9–4 on Saturdays. A Spanish-speaking Navigator is always on site, and HCAM uses translators to assist people who speak other languages. In the first week of Open Enrollment, 47 households were served in Pasadena.

HCAM Executive Director Kathleen Westcoat said that the organization expanded its presence into the county based on positive consumer feedback from last year. “Health insurance is complicated. People told us loud and clear that they appreciated the personal assistance our Navigators offered and wanted more,” Westcoat said.

HCAM also opened a location in Reisterstown (523 Main St.) to serve people north of Baltimore. (Residents living or working in Baltimore City may prefer to get assistance at HCAM’s headquarters at 201 E. Baltimore St.) The new storefronts are a cost-effective way to help consumers get coverage. Westcoat said that HCAM opened and operates the new locations on $1 million less from the state than the organization was granted last year.

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