Tuesday, October 01, 2013

CALIFORNIA - Educating Latinos on Health Insurance Exchanges

"California Reaches Out to Educate Latino Community on New Insurance Exchange" PBS Newshour 9/30/2013

Excerpt

JUDY WOODRUFF (Newshour):  As we heard earlier, even with a possible government shutdown looming tonight over the fate of the health care law, one thing won't change: Money to implement the law has already been allocated.

And, tomorrow, the federal government and 16 states are poised to open new online insurance marketplaces.

One of the key groups being targeted for enrollment, Latinos, who make up a third of the uninsured nationwide.

Kwame Holman reports.

KWAME HOLMAN (Newshour):  Hundreds of people, young and old, stood in line on a recent morning outside the Cesar Chavez Civic Center in Oakland, Calif.

The occasion was a health fair organized by community groups, and the mood was festive, as the largely Hispanic participants prepared to sign up for programs, including food stamps, get free medical screenings, and even free healthful food.  But the biggest draw was the large area devoted to health insurance.

WOMAN:  What do you think are the chances for me to qualify?

WOMAN:  It just depends on the income.

KWAME HOLMAN:  Here, specially trained staff explained what type of insurance people would be eligible for under the Affordable Care Act, known as Obamacare, which requires everyone to be insured.

Of the nation's 53 million Latinos, about 10 million are uninsured, four million of them in California.  There's a big push to get them enrolled in the state's new insurance exchange, Covered California.  Lower-income residents may qualify for premium subsidies or be enrolled in Medicaid, known here as Medi-Cal.  Undocumented individuals are not eligible.

No comments: