Norton Says D.C. Residents Can Still Sign Up for Health Insurance, with New Extension to April 15

WASHINGTON, DC – Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) today alerted District of Columbia residents that anyone who tried to sign up for health insurance through D.C. Health Link but could not receive in-person or telephone assistance, or anyone who created an account on D.C. Health Link but did not complete it by yesterday’s (March 31) deadline, may still enroll in a health plan by April 15.

“Even if you missed the deadline, it’s not too late to get covered,” said Norton. “No matter where you are in the process – just starting or nearly done – you can and should move quickly to enroll in a health plan. No D.C. resident should be caught subject to an IRS fine for failing to sign up when there is plenty of help available and an extension until April 15.”

Residents can find more information and sign up at DCHealthLink.com.

Last week and this week, Norton has been alerting D.C. residents of the March 31 deadline and various ways to get help signing up. Also, the Congresswoman, a co-chair of the Congressional Caucus on Black Men and Boys, has led an initiative with Caucus co-chair Danny Davis (D-IL) and Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) chair Marcia Fudge to encourage African Americans, with a special focus on African American men, to sign up for health insurance at healthcare.gov or through their local exchange. The focus to get African American men to sign up for health insurance is because they are the demographic with the lowest enrollment, despite their high asthma, diabetes, hypertension, cardiovascular, and HIV rates. Members of the CBC have been tweeting using the hashtag #BlackMenEnroll. The Congresswoman is encouraging members of the public and the media to keep an eye out for these pictures, tweets and hashtags on social media, and to continue the discussion through social media.

Published: April 1, 2014