Gary He for New York Daily News
As an example of the diversity of languages in New York City, Samyah Mohamed, owner of Avenue U Candy, Deli & Grocery in Brooklyn, shows off all the different language newspapers sold at his newsstand.
While Obamacare is intended to improve access to health care around the country, many immigrants and Limited English Proficient persons in New York may be left out.
Last week, the New York State Department of Health debuted its Health Plan Marketplace, an organized marketplace designed to help people shop for and enroll in health insurance coverage. Individuals, families and small businesses will be able to use this service to check their eligibility to programs such as Medicaid. However, the Marketplace has failed to take necessary steps to ensure access for immigrants and New Yorkers with limited English language proficiency. But with relatively straightforward changes, the state can maximize the benefits of the Health Plan Marketplace and increase access to health care for all New Yorkers.
One area in which the Marketplace fails to adequately serve immigrant communities is language access. For example, the enrollment application on the Marketplace website is only available in English, while 36% of New Yorkers who could potentially visit the site to enroll in a plan speak a language other than English.
We applaud the state for recently publishing a number of factsheets in seven different languages. However, there is an urgent need to translate the application itself. Although the state has announced plans to translate the Marketplace application into other languages, it has yet to provide a detailed timeline or concrete plan for doing so. While there is a call center available to assist consumers with limited English proficiency, there are no taglines in other languages directing non-English speakers to the call center. Without access to the translated application, many of these New Yorkers risk missing out on the benefits of the Marketplace.
In addition to limited language access, the Marketplace has little to no information about free or low-cost options that are available to all New Yorkers regardless of immigration status, including sliding fees at federally qualified health centers .
However, the Marketplace has an incredible opportunity to serve as a go-to hub for all health coverage-related information, both for those who qualify and those who may be ineligible to participate.
A critical example of the Marketplace’s potential for increasing access to information is Emergency Medicaid. Earlier this year, the Department of Health issued a new directive allowing for prequalification for Emergency Medicaid, which provides emergency treatment for individuals not eligible for Medicaid due to their immigration status. Unfortunately, many patients — and even some providers — were not even aware of the existence of this program, causing patients in need of vital emergency care to go untreated or be burdened with huge bills unnecessarily. By allowing immigrants to prequalify before they experience an emergency, the state is increasing access to emergency medical care and ensuring that hospitals receive reimbursements for the care they provide.
Yahoo Local News – New York Daily News
http://newyork.greatlocalnews.info/?p=15185
via Great Local News: New York http://newyork.greatlocalnews.info
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