Effective Outreach is Crucial for Getting Latinos Covered
NCLR held a briefing today to address the opportunities and challenges that Latinos face nationwide in enrolling in or renewing health insurance under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Our experts reported that bilingual materials, the availability of knowledgeable navigators and extensive community outreach to answer questions about deadlines, eligibility and financial help would improve Latino participation. The second ACA open enrollment begins Nov. 15, 2014 and ends Feb. 15, 2015. Information and enrollment applications are available at www.HealthCare.gov and www.CuidadoDeSalud.gov or by calling 1-800-318-2596.
Below are highlights from the event:
NCLR’s Senior Vice President for Programs, Delia Pompa, delivered opening remarks.
Pompa: Latinos remain the most uninsured in this country. There are two things we need to do to change this. #OurSalud
— NCLR (@NCLR) November 12, 2014
Pompa: First, make sure those Latinos that enrolled last year, stay enrolled; Second, get those that did not sign up last year signed up. — NCLR (@NCLR) November 12, 2014
Panelists for the press briefing included: Sinsi Hernández-Cansio, Director of Health Equity, Families USA, Steven Lopez, Manager, Health Policy Project, and NCLR, Mayra Alvarez, CMS, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
RT @GeorgetownCCF: #HispanicKids report authors @NCLR press conference @NCLRHealth pic.twitter.com/zQAuDQxqWV
— NCLR (@NCLR) November 12, 2014
Panelist Sinsi Hernández-Cansio, Families USA: A family of 4 making $94k/year would be eligible for #ACA financial help. #OurSalud — NCLR (@NCLR) November 12, 2014
Hernández-Cansio: This enrollment period will be a great opportunity for those w/o insurance to get some peace of mind. #OurSalud — NCLR (@NCLR) November 12, 2014
Hernández-Cansio: For any major financial decision, people shop all around all the time, health insurance is no different. #OurSalud
— NCLR (@NCLR) November 12, 2014
Mayra Alvarez, @CMSGov, now speaking on what open enrollment means for Latinos. #OurSalud — NCLR (@NCLR) November 12, 2014
Did you know 1 in 4 Latinos in US lack health coverage? @NCLR @NHeLP_org are helping more ppl #GetCovered: http://t.co/BwnwMDWTo7 #ACAworks — Atlantic (@atlantic) November 12, 2014
Alvarez: The marketplace is the only place where consumers can get fin. assistance to help pay for their premiums. #OurSalud
— NCLR (@NCLR) November 12, 2014
Alvarez: The overwhelming majority of Latinos in the U.S. qualify for some sort of financial assistance. #OurSalud — NCLR (@NCLR) November 12, 2014
Vast majority of uninsured #HispanicKids qualify for CHIP/Medicaid: http://t.co/75cPIZ28MZ via @GeorgetownCCF @NCLR pic.twitter.com/tYHxjQN87V
— Enroll America (@EnrollAmerica) November 12, 2014
Steven Lopez, Manager, NCLR Health Policy Project, now speaking. #OurSalud — NCLR (@NCLR) November 12, 2014
Lopez: The awareness gap is one of the challenges to enrolling Latinos. #OurSalud
— NCLR (@NCLR) November 12, 2014
Lopez: Mixed-status families is another challenge. Applying without fear is a message we must keep pushing #OurSalud — NCLR (@NCLR) November 12, 2014
Lopez: State refusals to expand #Medicaid has severely limited access to services for Latinos. #OurSalud
— NCLR (@NCLR) November 12, 2014
Lopez: 200k Floridian Latinos would benefit from expanding #Medicaid, 600k in #Texas. #OurSalud — NCLR (@NCLR) November 12, 2014
Steven Lopez @NCLR: two-thirds of uninsured #Hispanickids eligible for Medicaid and CHIP and enrollment for these programs is always open
— Sonya Schwartz (@SonyaSchwartz) November 12, 2014
Alvarez: #Immigration information given when signing up for health care is for verification purposes only, not enforcement. #OurSalud — NCLR (@NCLR) November 12, 2014
Information for #ACA verification docs for immigrants can be found here: http://t.co/1mtjbOH3vV
— NCLR (@NCLR) November 12, 2014
Today’s event has wrapped. Read our latest report w/@GeorgetownCCF on uninsured rates of #Latino kids: http://t.co/ZlCeyVzhfk #OurSalud — NCLR (@NCLR) November 12, 2014
The report is also available below:
