Tuesday, November 5, 2024

Hispanic Caucus Alarmed by Lack of Obamacare Latino Outreach

On Thursday, the Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC) sent a letter to Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price saying that they are “alarmed” by the lack of work with the coalition of Latino advocacy groups called the Latino Affordable Care Act Coalition. The caucus is demanding to meet with Price to ensure that Hispanic families get enrolled in Obamacare.

“Thanks to the ACA, 4 million adults and more than 600,000 Latino children have gained health coverage. Moreover we have seen a 20-point decline in the number of uninsured Latino … However, one in six Latinos remain uninsured so more work needs to be done to reach these communities,” the Congressional Hispanic Caucus said in the letter.

CHC members believe the coalition has been instrumental in ensuring that millions of Hispanic families obtain the information they need to enter the health care system. The first lack of work on Latino outreach was first reported by Talking Points Memo last Thursday.

“ACA remains the law of the land,” Steven Lopez, associate director of the health policy project at UnidosUS, said. “We worked with past administrations and we are ready to work with this administration and this administration has a responsibility to successfully implement the law, not undermine it.”

With the Latino population being one of the youngest and healthiest, speaking to the young Latinos will be critical; healthier people help spread the risk for health insurance coverage. The CHC and other Latino stakeholders will continue to fight to provide healthcare access to the fastest growing U.S. population.

NBC Latino