In 2013, the America’s Health Ratings report showed 13.9 percent of Alabamians did not have insurance through their employer or through the government. A new student organization, Bama Covered, now strives to reduce this percentage by educating the public about available health care options.
“[Bama Covered is] a non-partisan, student-powered organization working to make sure every Alabamian is informed about their health care options,” Josh Carpenter, president of Bama Covered, said. “The bottom line is that people do not know their options.”
Bama Covered’s goals include dispelling myths, training students and going into communities to explain the facts about health care eligibility. Bama Covered is intended to be an objective source of information about health care.
“The uninsured people, they’re people we interact with everyday, so all too often we put a number on it. We do that, and we just walk away, but it’s people we know, we love, people we worship with and people we go to school with,” Carpenter said.
Bama Covered strives to be objective on the politically divisive issue of health care in the United States. Marlan Golden, a student captain for Bama Covered and senior majoring in history and Spanish, said the organization seeks to educate people on wise health care decision making, rather than playing political games.
“We are simply an education campaign,” Golden said. “We believe people should have the right to make informed decisions, especially when it comes to health care. This idea is born out of a frustration with politics as usual; the current atmosphere is about point-scoring and punditry. Health care should be about people, not politics.”
Bama Covered is recruiting 125 UA students to join in their efforts. The organization is seeking students to work as connectors, who are responsible for connecting the community to resources, and as catalysts, who will be trained, certified application counselors.
“Our volunteer training prepares students to serve as Bama Covered connectors,” Golden said. “Connectors connect people to information and resources about their health care options. All Bama Covered volunteers will complete the connector training. We also have opportunities for volunteers to become further involved as catalysts, who work with hospitals and health organizations to walk citizens through their health care options. These volunteers are required to complete additional training.”
Bama Covered provides a comprehensive two-hour training session to all volunteers, and catalysts will also partake in an online, at-your-own-pace certification course, which takes about five hours to complete. Volunteers will be responsible for community outreach, both door-to-door and at targeted community events.
Health care insurance enrollment ends March 31, so Bama Covered hopes to mobilize students quickly.
Students can get more information about Bama Covered at www.bamacovered.org, including sign-up information, communication about Bama Covered events and locations for training.
