It's decision time for some people in the Quad Cities. It's time to decide whether or not to register for health insurance through the Affordable Care Act.
The deadline is Sunday, January 31, 2016.
Counselors with The Project of the Quad Cities have answered pretty much every question imaginable about the process of signing up.
"People come in because they just want some help in person. You can call the Marketplace, and they'll do everything over the phone with you, but that can be confusing also," healthcare counselor Lisa Rios said.
Deadlines have come and gone before, but this Sunday, it's the last chance to sign up through Healthcare.gov.
If you miss the deadline, you miss out on insurance for the rest of 2016.
"The only other way that you could enroll between January 31st and next fall is if you have a life-changing event. You lose your job, you lose your current health insurance, have a baby, get married," The Project of the Quad Cities Grants and Services Director Thea Hansen-Bettis said.
Not having insurance will also come with a steep fee, nearly 3% higher than last year, out of your taxes in 2017.
Counselors are taking questions from anyone who walks or calls in for help, but they're making a stronger effort to reach out to people who can't speak English to get them registered on time.
"This year, we deliberately targeted some of our navigators who have the ability to speak Spanish, or speak French and walk into those communities and educate," Hansen-Bettis said.
It can be a quick education process for everyone, especially when counselors show people just how easy it is to sign up.
"People are relieved. They think they need all this information, their tax returns, and they don't. It's just basic, your name, birth date, address, phone number, social security number and how much money you make," Rios said.
Then, after picking out the ideal plan, you're all set.
For the next four days, counselors are expecting to be overwhelmed with questions, but they're ready to help as many people as possible sign up for time runs out.
If you do have any questions about signing up, you can reach out to The Project of the Quad Cities or visit the Get Covered Illinois website.
There will be counselors available at The Project of the Quad Cities offices until 10:30 p.m. on Sunday.
One big recommendation they do have is not to wait until the last possible minute to register for insurance. Taking the time to fill out everything now will make the process much faster and will be sure to keep you from missing the deadline.