Katie, Jose, Andres, Tino UNM, Albuquerque, NM created on Thu October 24, 2013
On October 2, the day after enrollment started for the new Health Care Exchange in NM, Students at the University of New Mexico seemed a little confused. "It's affordable?" says one student. Although, there seems to be little knowledge on the Medicaid Expansion or the NM Health Care Exchange, students do seem on the right track to understanding how the Affordable Care Act will positively effect their fellow community members.
A group of theatre students stood along the railing of a loading dock just outside of the UNM theatre building and spoke to me about their knowledge of The Affordable Care Act. One student suggested, "More than anything Obamacare is trying to do something to solve the problem." All four students currently have health insurance through their parents plans, however they fear that when they graduate college they'll no longer have access to coverage because, "We're all going to be poor actors " one said.
Again, there are obviously some holes in the young adult's knowlege of the benefits of the ACA and is therefore more important than ever to reach out to campuses across New Mexico.