With the aims of increasing competition among health plans, distributing the risk of the individual insurance markets more evenly, and providing subsidies to consumers to purchase coverage, the Affordable Care Act (ACA) has the potential to reduce disparities in insurance access and affordability for rural residents. Early evidence on health plan offerings suggests that the relative affordability of rural versus urban plans may be mixed. Less is known about rural residents' perceptions of the insurance choices available to them, their understanding of the ACA, and their participation in subsidized coverage.

Using the Health Reform Monitoring Survey (HRMS), this project will produce two briefs examining rural-urban comparisons in insurance status, open enrollment knowledge and perceptions, and perceived affordability of coverage available through the Health Insurance Marketplaces.

Publications

• Knowledge of Health Insurance Concepts and the Affordable Care Act Among Rural Residents
  Policy Brief
  Maine Rural Health Research Center
  Date: 07/2017
  Health insurance literacy is central to identifying eligibility for coverage and subsidies, choosing a plan, and using optimal healthcare services. This study examined rural-urban differences in knowledge and/or use of the Affordable Care Act Marketplaces; subsidies; the health insurance mandate; and health insurance terms and concepts.