Health care saves lives.

That is why one of my Administration’s top priorities is to ensure that Maine families, small businesses, and self-employed people have access to high-quality, affordable health care. 

While we have made significant progress by expanding MaineCare to more than 38,000 people this year, protecting health care for Maine people with pre-existing conditions and passing legislation to reduce prescription drug costs, and supporting treatment to combat the opioid epidemic, we still can do more.

This week I announced a statewide campaign called CoverME to help Maine people, individuals self-employed, and small businesses understand their health insurance choices and sign up for the coverage that they need.

Later this month, CoverME will run digital and tv ads across the State of Maine about the importance of health insurance. The campaign will distribute education materials about MaineCare expansion and the upcoming open enrollment period for private HealthCare.gov plans, that runs from November 1 to December 15 of this year. 

The CoverME campaign is supported by a $750,000 grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and it requires no state funding.  

You know health care should not be a luxury, or a privilege reserved for well to do people, and yet more than 106,000 Maine people do not have health insurance. 

That is unacceptable. You know we all get sick, we all need to go to a doctor at some point, and as Governor, my top priority is to ensure that every Maine person is able to see a doctor, to get preventive care and to afford critical prescription medications so they can all stay healthy, and work and care for their families.

I hope that if your family or you are struggling with medical bills in our complicated health care system, you will please visit www.CoverME.gov or call 1-800-965-7476 for free help to find out if you qualify for affordable, quality health care coverage.