Osceola Co. event helps people enroll for health insurance as deadline nears

OSCEOLA COUNTY, Fla. — Obamacare navigators are reaching out to the Hispanic community in Osceola County to try and get people signed up for health insurance.

Much like the botched rollout of Healthcare.gov, Obamacare registration efforts specifically geared toward Hispanics haven't exactly gone smoothly in the past.

With 18 days before the deadline to signup for coverage and not face a penalty fine, Spanish-speaking navigators hit the ground running Thursday to help get health insurance for as many in their community as possible.

“The Latino community is thirsty for it,” said Dr. Jamie Torres with the Department of Health and Human Services.

Eyewitness News spoke to residents who are scrambling to get coverage.

“Well we need health insurance. I mean, I had it before, but since I was a part-timer they took it away. I have to look for another option,” said resident Patricia Rodriguez.

Channel 9’s Mario Boone found out not as many people showed up as event organizers had hoped for despite aggressive outreach efforts.

Rodriguez said regardless of who does or doesn’t turn out, she found the event helpful.

“It’s great because a lot of Hispanics don’t know what’s going on to how to take advantage of it, so this is good,” she said.

WFTV