Legislative Action Opportunities

Interested in engaging with a local campaign? There's a lot happening in our community, and they need your help. Find what you are passionate about and get involved. 

Hoping to tell your story, attend trainings, or advocate for local and state anti-poverty legislation? Fill out this form to get connected. Direct link: http://bit.ly/takeactionMIA

HEALTH 

Closing the Coverage Gap -- Contact: Athena Ford, FL CHAIN | athena@flchain.org

Earned Paid Sick Days and Paid Family Leave -- Contact: Deborah Dion, SFVWF | dion.deborah@gmail.com

Pesticides in Farms -- Contact: Elvira Carvajal, FWAF | fwafhomestead@hotmail.com

Women and Trauma -- Contact: Renita Holmes, WAAIVE | holmes_builders@yahoo.com

FINANCIAL SECURITY 

Wage Theft -- Contact: Jeanette Smith, SFIWJ | jeanettemiami@gmail.com

Raising the Minimum Wage -- 1Miami | info@onemiaminow.org

Predatory Lending --  Contact: Karen Landry, War on Poverty/RAISE FL | klandry@waronpoverty.org

Fight for 15 --  Contact: Ericka Ward, Fight for 15/SEIU | ericka.ward@seiufl.org

HOUSING AND TRANSPORTATION 

Housing discrimination --  Contact: LaTonda James, NHSSF | LatondaJ@nhssf.org

Resident displacement and housing --  Contact: Adrian Madriz, MWC | adrian@theworkerscenter.org

Public transportation --  Contact: Marta Viciedo, Urban Impact Lab | marta.viciedo@gmail.com

Unaccompanied minors and homelessness --  Contact: Jorge de la Paz, MCH | jorge@miamihomeless.org

EDUCATION AND CRIMINALIZATION 

Driver's License Campaign --  Contact: Francesca Menes, FLIC | francesca@floridaimmigrant.org

Voting rights --  Contact: Jacob Coker-Dukowitz, FNM | jacob@flnewmajority.org

State violence and School to Prison Pipeline --  Contact: Phillip Agnew, Dream Defenders | phillip@dreamdefenders.org

Friends of Broward Detainees --  Contact: Christine Ho, Friends of Broward Detainees | christine.gt.ho@gmail.com

Rights Restoration --  Contact: Kevin Spring, Spring4ward | kevin@spring4ward.org

Connecting returning citizens to employers --  Contact: Mariamee Rodriguez | marrodriguez@jud11.flcourts.org

Health Reform Frequently Asked Questions

Open Enrollment has officially begun. Until mid-spring, organizations across South Florida will be hosting fairs and events to educate the community about ACA and to offer ACA navigation services. Still, many residents and service providers have questions they would like answered.

The Kaiser Family Foundation has assembled an extremely detailed Health Reform FAQs page. There you will find simple, clear answers to all of your questions. To read more, go to kff.org. Should you still have questions, call us at 305-576-5001 and we will direct you to the right place.

What is the health insurance Marketplace?

Health Insurance Marketplaces (also known as Exchanges) are new organizations that will be set up to create more organized and competitive markets for buying health insurance. They will offer a choice of different health plans, certifying plans that participate and providing information to help consumers better understand their options. Through the Marketplace, individuals and families will be able to shop for coverage if they need to buy health insurance on their own. Premium and cost sharing subsidies will be available through the Marketplace to reduce the cost of coverage for individuals and families, based on their income. Individuals and families with very low incomes will also be able to find out at the Marketplace if they are eligible for coverage through Medicaid and CHIP. Finally, small businesses can also buy coverage for their employees through the Small Business Health Options Program (SHOP) Marketplace.

There will be a health insurance Marketplace in every state for individuals and families and for small businesses. Some Marketplaces will be operated by the State and have a special state name (such as CoveredCalifornia or The Maryland Health Connection.) In other states where the federal government runs the Marketplace, it will be known called The Health Insurance Marketplace of [state name.]

What health plans are offered through the Marketplace?

All health plans offered through the Marketplace must meet the requirements of “qualified health plans.” This means they will cover essential health benefits, limit the amount of cost sharing (such as deductibles and co-pays) for covered benefits, and satisfy all other consumer protections required under the Affordable Care Act.

Health plans may vary somewhat in the benefits they cover. Health plans also will vary based on the level of cost sharing required. Plans will be labeled Bronze, Silver, Gold, and Platinum to indicate the overall amount of cost sharing they require. Bronze plans will have the highest deductibles and other cost sharing, while Platinum plans will have the lowest. Health plans will also vary based on the networks of hospitals and other health care providers they offer. Some plans will require you to get all non-emergency care in-network, while others will provide some coverage when you receive out-of-network care.

Can I buy a plan in the Marketplace if I don’t have a green card?

If you are not a U.S. citizen, a U.S. national, or an alien lawfully present in the U.S., you are not eligible to buy a plan on the health insurance Marketplace. However, you can shop for health insurance outside of the Marketplace in the non-group market. Insurers outside of the Marketplace are prohibited from turning you down based on your health status or your immigration status and must follow generally the same rules as plans in the Marketplace. To obtain coverage, contact a state-licensed health insurance company or a licensed agent or broker. Your state Department of Insurance can help you find one.  

ADVISORY: Half in Ten Campaign and Catalyst Miami Host South Florida Anti-Poverty Summit

                    

For Immediate Release                                                                                                                                                  
November 6, 2014                                                                                                                           

ADVISORY: Half in Ten Campaign and Catalyst Miami Host South Florida Anti-Poverty Summit

Miami, Florida — On Saturday, November 8, 2014, the Center for American Progress Action Fund’s Half in Ten campaign will join Catalyst Miami and South Florida Voices for Working Families to co-host South Florida’s first anti-poverty summit, titled “The Time is Now: Building a South Florida Movement to Cut Poverty and Create Opportunity,” in Miami. The event will bring together service providers, social justice advocates, policymakers, media, and local and national policy experts to learn from recent success, build new partnerships, discuss policy priorities, and develop a joint strategy to make poverty reduction a real and accountable priority in 2016.

Speakers will include State Sen. Dwight Bullard (D-39); State Reps. Cynthia Stafford (D-109) and Barbara Watson (D-107); Miami-Dade County Commissioner Xavier Suarez and Miami-Dade County Commissioner-elect Daniella Levine Cava; and Monica Russo, president of SEIU Florida State Council, Executive Vice President of 1199 SEIU, among others.

RSVP to this event.

WHO:

State Sen. Dwight Bullard (D-39) 
State Rep. Cynthia Stafford (D-109) 
State Rep. Barbara Watson (D-107) 
Mayor Cindy Lerner, Village of Pinecrest 
City of Miami Commissioner Keon Hardemon, District 5 
Miami-Dade County Commissioner Xavier Suarez, District 7 
Miami-Dade County Commissioner-elect Daniella Levine Cava, District 8 
Monica Russo, President of SEIU Florida State Council, Executive Vice President of 1199 SEIU 
Clarence Washington, President of Transport Workers Union Local 291, AFL-CIO 
Karen Woodall, Executive Director, Florida Center for Fiscal and Economic Policy 
Nely Rodriguez, Senior Staff Member and Leader, Coalition of Immokalee Workers 
Dorothy Bendross-Mindingall, Miami-Dade County Public Schools School Board Member, District 2 
Phillip Agnew, Executive Director, Dream Defenders

WHEN:

Saturday, November 8, 2014 
9:00 a.m. ET – 4:00 p.m. ET 
A complete agenda, including a rundown of panel sessions, can be viewed here.

WHERE:

University of Miami Life Science and Technology Park 
1951 NW 7th Avenue, 6th Floor 
Miami, Florida, 33136

RSVP:

Clickhere to RSVP. (required) Registration closes at 3:00PM on November 6th, 2014. 

For more information, contact Carla Strickland at CarlaS@catalystmiami.org or 786.414.1292 or Chelsea Kiene at ckiene@americanprogressaction.org or 202.478.5328.

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The Center for American Progress Action Fundis the sister advocacy organization of the Center for American Progress. The Action Fund transforms progressive ideas into policy through rapid response communications, legislative action, grassroots organizing and advocacy, and partnerships with other progressive leaders throughout the country and the world. The Action Fund is also the home of the Progress Report.