Southeast Louisiana Legal Services has a "know your rights" factsheet on Louisiana Medicaid cutoffs during the COVID-19 pandemic. If your Medicaid was cutoff and you need legal assistance, please contact Acadiana Legal Service Corporation and Southeast Louisiana Legal Services directly.
Enrollment for the health insurance marketplace exchange (also called Affordable Care Act or Obamacare) is open until January 15, 2022. Enroll at healthcare.gov. You may also qualify for assistance in paying the premiums.
Additionally, if you had insurance through your employer and you have been laid off, you can always enroll for health insurance through healthcare.gov or for Medicaid (if you income-qualify) - you do not need to wait for open enrollment because losing your job is a "qualifying life event."
Newly added in the American Rescue Plan Act, signed by President Biden earlier this year, if you are laid off from your job, the federal government will cover 100% of your COBRA heath insurance for up to 6 months this year. (Normally, you have to pay the monthly premium entirely yourself.) Reach out to your employer's Human Resources office for more information.
If you are low-income and need legal representation related to a COVID-19/coronavirus pandemic issue, Acadiana Legal Service Corporation and Southeast Louisiana Legal Services provide free legal assistance to those that qualify. Please do not visit legal service providers in person during this time. Due to the virus, all organizations are encouraging people to contact them over the telephone, or by applying for services online.
If you are looking for general legal resources (not specifically about the pandemic) for self-represented litigants and people in court without an attorney, including referrals to free and low-cost legal representation, please check out the Law Library's online guide.
The Law Library hopes you are staying safe and if you need further assistance, don't hesitate to call us at 504-310-2400 (toll-free in Louisiana at 800-820-3038) or email us at library@lasc.org. Though we are not physically in the library, we are still answering reference questions via phone and email quickly!