Have questions about healthcare law? Times’ Chad Terhune has answers

Anxious about how the national healthcare law will affect you? Will premiums soar? Can I keep my doctor? What’s the penalty if I don’t buy health insurance?

The biggest change to healthcare in nearly half a century is just weeks away, and many consumers still aren’t sure what it means for them.

Starting in January, most Americans have to buy health insurance as part of the federal Affordable Care Act championed by President Obama. Covered California, a new state agency that’s implementing the health law, is scrambling to get ready for open enrollment by Oct. 1.

Many Californians say they’re worried about how expensive health insurance will be and whether their local doctor and hospital will be included in these new health plans.

READ MORE: Healthcare law comes to California

Like many people nowadays, Scott and Danielle Nelson of Orange County have been searching for answers to those types of questions. “The uncertainty in health insurance really has us scratching our heads,” said Scott Nelson, 49, a self-employed consultant in Aliso Viejo.

The Nelsons aren’t the only ones in the dark.
A Field Poll released this week found that just 25% of California voters younger than 65 said they had heard a lot or some about Covered California, the state’s new insurance market. Awareness was even lower among the uninsured: Only 18% of those voters said they knew much about it.

To help address some of the confusion surrounding the health law, the Los Angeles Times hosted an open Twitter chat with reporter Chad Terhune, who has covered healthcare for many years at The Times and other publications.

Here is the complete chat with questions and answers: