Trying to help friend dealing with psychosis, missed the Covered California open enrollment period
He really needs meds but unfortunately missed the cutoff for open enrollment last night. Going another year without treatment would be a potentially life-altering disaster for him. He has had bad experiences getting treated in the past (put in a facility involuntarily, refused the meds he was given) and it took me a long time even persuading him to seek treatment, so he will need a sure hand. He is largely estranged from his family and I seem to be the only one helping him with this (from the opposite coast, doing what I can). Frankly I am also looking for a reliable doctor to help guide him back to reality, which I can’t do alone.
Any thoughts on what some options could be? What comes to mind are:
There is a free psychiatric clinic in LA (where he lives) but the reviews are atrocious. Given his bad experiences with medical treatment in the past I am reluctant to jeopardize progress with a crummy clinic.
Looks like Covered California has a “special enrollment” period with certain criteria. Is this pretty restrictive or is it easy to get into?
Medi-cal also seems to be an option—not sure if he meets income cutoff though and smaller selection of doctors.
Paying out of pocket is technically an option, though seems prohibitively expensive.
Is there any other way to acquire affordable insurance/care outside of the open enrollment period?
Very bummed he missed the open enrollment but don’t want to give up hope for helping him.