Health Equity Connection for September 2012

Upcoming Events Healthcare Quality Equity and Action Forum – 9/24/12–9/25/12 The Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Health Disparity & Health Equity Conference – 9/25/12–9/26/2012 Annual Health Disparities Conference – 10/8/12 Beyond the Stethoscope: How Community Health Centers Address the Social Determinants of Health – 10/9/12 DiversityDoctor 2012: Remaining Competitive while Reducing Healthcare Disparities and Improving Patient Satisfaction – 10/13/12 Overcoming Disparities: Diabetes Care in High Risk Populations – 10/22/12–10/23/12 2012 Summit on the Science of Eliminating Health Disparities – 10/31/12–11/3/12 National Knowledge for Equity Conference – 11/13/12–11/14/12

In this Issue

• New Resources
• Policy Updates
• Fellowship Opportunities
  
• Miami Town Hall Recap
  
• Hispanic Heritage Month
• Upcoming Events
  

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New Resources

• The Supreme Court Decision: What It Means for Medicaid (Families USA)
  
  
• To Republicans: Don’t Balance the Budget through Medicaid Cuts (Families USA)
  
  
• Responding to LGBT Health Disparities (Missouri Foundation for Health)
  
  
• State Policymakers’ Guide for Advancing Health Equity through Health Reform Implementation (National Academy for State Health Policy)
  
  
• 10 Reasons the Medicaid Expansion Helps to Address Health Disparities (National Health Law Program)
  
  
•  Opting In to the Medicaid Expansion under the ACA: Who Are the Uninsured Adults Who Could Gain Health Insurance Coverage? (The Urban Institute)
  
   

 

Policy Updates

Uninsured Rate Declined in 2011 and Young Adults Continue to Gain Coverage
The U.S. Census Bureau released a new report showing that the number of people without health insurance declined by 1.3 million from 2010 to 2011. The percentage of uninsured also fell from 16.3 percent in 2010 to 15.7 percent in 2011. These data indicate an important reversal of the upward trend in the uninsured rate that has persisted over the last decade. Additionally, the report shows significant gains in coverage for young adults. Thanks to the Affordable Care Act’s provision allowing children to stay on their parents’ coverage until they turn 26, about 1 million more young adults gained coverage in 2011.

States Attempt to Rebuke Provisions of the Affordable Care Act
Several states are currently engaged in efforts to reject certain provisions of the Affordable Care Act. Maine and Illinois are trying to roll back Medicaid coverage and get around rules in the law that require states to maintain the Medicaid eligibility standards that were in place in 2010 until 2014. On November 6, residents of Montana will vote on a measure that would ban the state or the federal government from ordering Montanans to purchase health insurance in a symbolic effort to snub the Affordable Care Act’s coverage requirements.  

HHS Takes Steps toward Protecting Transgender People under the Affordable Care Act
In a recent letter, the Office of Civil Rights (OCR) of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) clarified that provisions in the health care law prohibiting sex discrimination in health insurance also apply to transgender people. HHS states that sex discrimination “extends to claims of discrimination based on gender identity or failure to conform to stereotypical notions of masculinity or femininity.” OCR is currently accepting and investigating complaints of sex discrimination, stating that they are committed to improving the health and well-being of members of the LGBT community. Read More.

Fellowship Opportunities

AHCJ Fellowships for Reporting on Health Care Performance (Association of Health Care Journalists) – 11/9/12

The Mongan Commonwealth Fund Fellowship in Minority Health Policy (Harvard Medical School) – 12/15/12

Miami Town Hall Recap

On August 30, Families USA held a town hall in Miami, Florida with National Council of La Raza, Florida CHAIN, Florida SEIU, and MiLola. The goal was to speak with Latinos about how the Affordable Care Act will benefit their community. Native Miamian León Rodríguez, Director of the Office of Civil Rights at the Department of Health and Human Services, spoke to a full house of community members and grasstop leaders about what Latinos stand to gain. As a part of this effort, we are collecting stories about why the Affordable Care Act is important to Latinos. Learn more here.

Hispanic Heritage Month

National Hispanic Heritage Month is commemorated each year between September 15 and October 15.  It is a time to celebrate the many great contributions this community has made, and it’s also an opportunity to discuss the challenges Latinos face, particularly in health. The passage of the Affordable Care Act was a huge step toward improving the health of Hispanics. Read more about how the health care law is helping Latinos.

We’d like to hear from you! Did we miss something? If you’d like to highlight an organization, event, activity, or other resource in our newsletter, please contact us at healthequity@familiesusa.org.

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