Get insured as an improviser/actor/artist

[acrouch]

ACoT has this really cool partnership deal with Fractured Atlas Open Arts Network in New York whereby our members have free access to all their services — including health, event, and liability insurance as well as online professional development seminars — for individual artists and/or arts organizations — and other stuff. They even have film liability insurance.

We’ve already had members who’ve used their liability and event insurance and were really happy with it. But they weren’t that crazy about the health insurance options FA had for people in Texas. But now FA has some great NEW options for health insurance. So we’ve asked Adam Natale of FA to come here and talk about them — and all their benefits — with anyone who’s interested. Arts organizations or individual artists.

There are two info sessions people can come to. May 8 at the DAC and May 9 at the Vortex. The DAC session is midday starting at 12:30. The Vortex session starts at 5:30 PM. There will be complementary light refreshments at both sessions.

So this is the invite and more info about all the free benefits ACoT members can get via this terrific partnership. People will need to RSVP on account of the food stuff. They can RSVP to membership@acotonline.org <mailto:membership@acotonline.org>

I think this can be a really good deal for people. We’re very excited to be able to offer something that.

Thanks heaps,

Latifah

[kaci_beeler]

Wait. What does this mean?

[ratliff]

Wait. What does this mean?

As usual, Beeler, you're going to have to be more specific.

[kaci_beeler]

Wait. What does this mean?

As usual, Beeler, you're going to have to be more specific.

So we have access to this insurance...if we pay for it or what?
I just don't even know what this post means in regards to us? We can get this insurance for a cheaper rate since we're a part of ACOT?

[ratliff]

...Here's what I've turned up so far: These meetings are talks by a rep from a New York arts organization through which ACoT gets insurance for its members. BUT the meetings are also open to any potential ACoT members (I think you can join on the spot), so for someone like me who currently has no health insurance at all, this is at least worth a look. I'm going tomorrow if anyone's interested.

Thanks for posting this, Crouch.

[ratliff]

I think AIC's ACoT status is up in the air. But given that there's only a 12-dollar difference between individual dues as a member of an ACoT organization ($36) and dues as an unaffiliated person ($48), it doesn't seem like a deal killer.

[ratliff]

And yes, I think you have to be a member of ACoT to get the insurance.

[taminelson]

which one are you going to ratliff?

[Jessica]

This is awesome, Andy. Thank you so much.

[ratliff]

which one are you going to ratliff?

Tomorrow, noon-thirty, Daugherty Arts Center. I'll try to remember to post a report.

[York99]

which one are you going to ratliff?

Tomorrow, noon-thirty, Daugherty Arts Center. I'll try to remember to post a report.

I might try to make this. I hope I remember. Someone call my assistant, Bridget, and let her know please.

[kaci_beeler]

Update?

[ratliff]

Update?

Dammit, Beeler, I'm not your bitch! Oh, wait, yes I am.

Okay, so I sat in DAC and took notes for an hour and a half. Crouch took notes for 30 minutes and then pretended to get a phone call and never came back. My experience covering city council meetings gave me the staying power to endure. Here's the bare bones:

ACoT is affiliated with Fractured Atlas, an NYC arts service organization, which in turn is affiliated with the Open Arts Network, a national association of arts service organizations. Because the OAN has 35,000 members, they can negotiate with insurance companies to get lower rates than any one of the local organizations could.

So if you want the insurance, you have to first join ACoT ($48 for individuals; $36 for students, seniors, and members of ACot member organizations, and no, I don't know if the AIC is officially a member organization). This automatically makes you an associate member of Fractured Atlas at no extra charge, which entitles you to use many of their services for free or a nominal fee. They offer all kinds of stuff like event and equipment insurance and fee-based marketing mentorships, wherein you pay a flat rate for a marketing professional to advise you on selling your show or venue. The website is fracturedatlas.org if you want to explore.

They're still hammering out the final details on the insurance, but it should be available in four to six weeks. They're offering four different plans. I haven't read through them yet, but the cost ranges from 60 to 200 bucks a month for an individual, 110 to 320 for individual plus spouse, and 135 to 385 for individual plus spouse plus child.

This presentation is essentially selling Fractured Atlas, so I had to sit through the explanations of everything else they do before he got to the insurance part -- no dummy, this guy -- but I actually found a lot of it pretty interesting, and they seem to be doing a lot of good pro-artist work that could be replicated here. I of course cannot vouch for their legitimacy, but what I saw didn't raise any red flags for me.

There's another one tomorrow night at the Vortex. If you need insurance, it's worth checking out, and if you ever think that you might be in the position of running your own venue and/or company, I would strongly recommend going. I took a lot more notes than this, so feel free to ask questions.

[kaci_beeler]

Thanks Ratliff!

<warning: personal information regarding myself ahead>

I pay $850/a year for St. Edward's insurance. But, they only co-pay prescription coverage up to $400 per year and then it skyrockets. I can no longer afford my medical expenses. The co-pay thing worked for about four months then I went over. I'm trying to figure out if it would be more cost-effective to take on this insurance.
Hmm. I guess it all depends on how much they co-pay on prescriptions. Do you have any of that information, did they state it in the meeting...or do I need to contact them?

[ratliff]

I have the handouts with the different plans on them, but I haven't gone through them yet. You're welcome to look at them, or you could get your own sheets of paper at the Vortex.