Resources

Actors Federal Credit Union
www.actorsfcu.com

The Actors Fund
www.actorsfund.org

Career Transitions for Dancers
http://www.careertransition.org/

Mayor’s Office Of Film, Theatre, and Broadcasting
http://www.nyc.gov/html/film/html/index/index.shtml

Motion Picture Players Welfare Fund
http://www.actorsfund.org/

Museum of the Moving Image
http://www.movingimage.us/site/site.php

New York State Department of Labor—Child Performer
http://www.labor.state.ny.us/

Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (V.I.T.A)
New York City V.I.T.A. (Volunteer Information Tax Assistance) Program assists hundreds of actors and stage managers with free tax advice.
V.I.T.A. is volunteer-run and receives support from SAG, Actors' Equity, and AFTRA.
For details call the VITA office at 212-921-2548 (Only active on Thursdays, additional hours from February through April).

Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts
http://www.vlany.org/

SAG Pension and Health
www.sagph.org

Al Hirschfeld Free Clinic
http://www.actorsfund.org/s

PRESS RELEASE
For immediate release
DATE: March 24, 2009
CONTACT: Ina Clark, 212.221.7300 ext. 176, iclark@actorsfund.org

THE ACTORS FUND LAUNCHES EXPANDED WEBSITE FOR HEALTH INSURANCE RESOURCES
Thousands of resources for comprehensive information included

(New York, NY) – The Actors Fund’s acclaimed Artists Health Insurance Resource Center website – www.ahirc.org – has re-launched with a complete redesign and a more powerful search engine, providing state-by-state information and resources to those seeking insurance. The website is well known as one of the most effective resources for comprehensive, unbiased information about getting and keeping affordable, quality health insurance and health care in every state.

The AHIRC site, which already attracts more than six hundred thousand visitors each year, uses annotated links to direct visitors to the best and most reliable healthcare resources on the web. Highlights of its content include:

• All categories of health insurance including government-subsidized and association plans.
• Information on free and sliding-scale clinics and local health programs.
• Tools for comparing the quality and cost of doctors and hospitals.
• Guides to finding lower cost prescription drugs and financial assistance programs.
• Rules regarding charity care and assistance with medical debt.
• National and local organizations advocating on behalf of artists and others for health care reform.

Since the first version site launched just over 10 years ago, this innovative website has been used by visual and performing artists and entertainment professionals around the country, a group that is twice as likely to be uninsured as the general population. It is also used by thousands of freelancers, the self-employed and small business owners in other fields. With funding from The National Endowment for the Arts and The Commonwealth Fund, AHIRC has grown with the use of the web to become the gold standard for providing health insurance information.

The expansion, redesign and relaunch of the site is made possible with the partnership and support of Leveraging Investments In Creativity (LINC), a project supported by the Ford Foundation. This partnership allows AHIRC to regularly update its content and expand its resources. And a new communications program will help hundreds of thousands additional people take advantage of this invaluable resource.

THE ACTORS FUND is a national human services organization that helps all professionals in performing arts and entertainment. The Fund – which supports those on stage and on screen and everyone behind the scenes who works in theatre, film, TV, music, dance, radio and opera – is a safety net, providing social services and emergency assistance, health services and health insurance information, employment and training programs and housing support for those who are in need, crisis or transition. Learn more about all of The Actors Fund’s services and programs at www.actorsfund.org