For most of us, a complex literal translation of the new healthcare legislation provided by the government (http://www.dol.gov/ebsa/healthreform/) is confusing. The new policies might be listed but it’s difficult to get the bigger picture – how does this all affect me?

To address the public bewilderment, organizations representing consumers, patients, physicians, nurses, hospitals and pharmacists came together in one accessible information hub – healthcareandyou.org. Healthcareandyou.org’s explanations of the legislation specifics and the latest news on its implementations are simple and thorough, but you’ll find the state resource options the most useful. You can search from their home page and discover your state’s efforts to implement the plan. Think you might qualify for a local program? State-by-state breakdowns are available here: healthcareandyou.org/state.  As an example, a family of four in New York earning under $89,400 a year may be eligible for health coverage through Child Health Plus or New York Medicaid.

Still having a hard time understanding the new healthcare legislation’s broad systemic changes? The short but fun video featured on http://healthreform.kff.org/ might help. Additionally, their collection of local statistics is incredibly helpful and valuable for any report or project.

Don’t forget to check out our article on healthcare reform and how it impacts workers and job seekers here. The changes are complicated, but there are great resources available out there.