Illustrating Health Reform: How Health Insurance Coverage Will Work
A new interactive feature from the Kaiser Family Foundation illustrates how individuals and businesses in a variety of situations could be affected by health reform. Users can click on a map of the United States showing cartoon individuals, families, and businesses to pull up a pop-up window, and learn how that particular individual, family, or employer will be affected by the new provisions going into effect in 2014 as part of the Affordable Care Act.

Long Term Care and the Health Reform Law
These two videos prepared by the Alliance for Health Reform provide answers to a lot of the most common questions about long-term care and how the new health reform law promotes long-term care.

HOW DOES THE HEALTH REFORM LAW PROMOTE LONG-TERM CARE? (4:26)

WHO NEEDS LONG-TERM CARE, AND WHO PAYS FOR IT? (2:39)

Protect Medicaid
National Council of La Raza with Families USA , the National Urban League, and the Asian & Pacific Islander American Health Forum are continuing to keep the pressure on the super committee to protect the Medicaid lifeline.
1) Follow this link for an easy way to use Twitter to ask the Super Committee to keep Medicaid safe: http://bit.ly/oJpodx
2) Call your members of Congress and Senate using their toll free number 1-888-876-6242  http://bit.ly/vvD6Nm


ARTICLES, REPORTS, AND THINGS TO READ

HHS announces refined survey standards to examine and help eliminate differences in care based on race, ethnicity, sex, primary language, or disability
http://1.usa.gov/rxgkG7

Why Protecting Medicaid Matters for Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders
From Asian & Pacific Islander American Health Forum http://bit.ly/rL3u2q

Reducing Disparities in Health Coverage with Mobile Technology
How mobile enrollment could help reduce disparities in access to care and health coverage.
From the California Pan-Ethnic Health Network http://bit.ly/mTTHYK

Ethnic Health Assessment for Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders in California
A statewide health assessment of California’s four major ethnic-racial communities
From Asian & Pacific Islander American Health Forum http://www.apiahf.org/EHAP_Update

Why Not the Best? Results from the National Scorecard on U.S. Health System Performance, 2011
The US health care system achieves a score of 64 out of 100.
From the Commonwealth Fund  http://bit.ly/qp787f

Segregated Spaces, Risky Places: The Effects of Racial Segregation on Health Inequities
How de facto segregation in metropolitan areas has an affect on the health status of those communities
From The Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies   http://bit.ly/olXy47

Specialty Tiers: Unequal Treatment
How assigning drugs to a specialty reimbursement tier compromises access to quality health care for minority and low-income populations.
From National Minority Quality Forum http://bit.ly/sxaLhh

How Chinese Seniors Navigate the U.S. Health Care System Epoch Times/New America Media, News Feature, Mei Zhou.
Elders from China may find themselves struggling to get needed health care, and some get caught between Chinese and U.S. systems.
From New America Media  http://bit.ly/vLNa5W

Join the Summit Health Institute for Research and Education, Inc. (SHIRE) on November 17 – 18, 2011 for a conference on  “Building Community Engagement in Underserved Neighborhoods: The Path to Health Empowerment”.

Kellogg Conference Hotel at Gallaudet University, Washington DC 

Thurs 11/17/11 5:30 – 7:00 PM             Reception
Friday 11/18/11 8:30AM – 4:30 PM      Conference

For complete conference info: http://bit.ly/rs1noc

To register, click here: http://bit.ly/nJ4S9p OR call 202-371-0277 (ext 6094)

Summit Health Institute for Research and Education, Inc. (SHIRE) has demonstrated the critical importance of community engagement in its policy and programmatic efforts to advance health and wellness in the District of Columbia and the nation. 

This conference provides a forum for SHIRE, partners and advocates for community engagement to share lessons learned and strategies that work to help impact communities and motivate individuals to take charge of their health.  This one-day interactive conference will offer tools that individuals, organizations, corporations, foundations and government agencies can use to engage residents in neighborhoods to create meaningful and sustainable partnerships in their communities to address obesity, hunger and health and wellness.

There are several events taking place this month that you should be aware of. For more information, please visit the linked websites.

APHA 139th Annual Meeting and Exposition
Oct 29 – Nov 2, 2011.
Don’t miss the following panels taking place on Nov 1st.
2:30 PM   Minority Communities and Preconception Health. Link: http://bit.ly/viF7JJ
4:30 PM A Model for Generating Evidence of Intervention Effectiveness and Best Practices in Programs Addressing Minority Health and Health Disparities. Link: http://bit.ly/tF8NdA

Overview of Previous Debt Proposals (fourth public hearing for the Super Committee)
November  1, 2011. 1:00 PM. 1100 Longworth House Office Building (House Ways and Means Committee)
You can watch via live web cast here: http://www.deficitreduction.gov/public/

National Health Equity Coalition- National Call to Action
November 1, 2011, 3:00 – 4:30 PM EDT
Join NHEC for a Webinar to learn more about the impact on states  and low-income families as well as what you can do to help ensure congress does not take a step backwards in the growing movement for health equity and the elimination of health disparities.
Register for the Webinar here: http://bit.ly/uxMaoK

Health, the Economy, and American Business
November 1st at 9:00 a.m., B338 Rayburn House Office Building
Sponsored by Trust for America’s Health

**Seizing the Opportunity: Achieving Equity in Health Reform **
November 7, 9, 15, 17, 2011
Los Angeles, Oakland, Fresno, and San Diego, California
Sponsored by California Pan-Ethnic Health Network
For more information and to register, click here http://bit.ly/w39vbL .

Webinar: Transforming Health Care Delivery Systems: Evolving Challenges for State Policymakers and Health Centers
November 15, 1:00-3:00 pm (EST)
“this webinar will profile Colorado’s Accountable Care Collaborative Program; highlight key variables about health center participation in state delivery system reform; and examine key issues for state policymakers, primary care associations, health centers, and vulnerable populations”
Register here: http://bit.ly/urMww5

**Building Community Engagement in Underserved Neighborhoods: The Path to Health Empowerment**
November 17 – 18, 2011. Kellogg Conference Hotel at Gallaudet University, Washington DC
For more information or to register, visit www.shireinc.org OR call 202-371-0277 (ext 6094)
Sponsored by the Summit Health Institute for Research and Education, Inc. (SHIRE)

2011 Disparities Forum: What Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Would Want Us to Know About Health Care Disparities
November 30, 2011. O’Keefe Auditorium, Massachusetts General Hospital, 55 Fruit Street, Boston, MA 02114
Sponsored by The Disparities Solutions Center
For more information and to register, click here http://bit.ly/7x9Nwy.

Save the Date: Health Action 2012
January 19 – 21, 2012. Washington DC
For more info, please click here: http://www.healthaction2012.org/

September 12, 2011
SACRAMENTO – Assembly member Warren T. Furutani (D – South Los Angeles County), announced that Assembly Concurrent Resolution (ACR) 67 was chaptered by the Secretary of State.  Sponsored by the community based organization Empowering Pacific Islander Communities, ACR 67 recognizes the contributions of Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander (NHPI) communities to California, and also recognizes the importance of preserving NHPI communities and their traditions.

An influx of NHPIs arrived in California in the 1950s after World War II.  Post-World War II, military service brought Pacific Islanders from the United States territories of American Samoa and Guam to California. Native Hawaiians and Tongans came to California seeking economic opportunities, with many Tongans migrating to California via American Samoa.  Many NHPIs initially settled in southern California cities such as Carson, Los Angeles, Long Beach, Oceanside, and San Diego, while others settled in San Francisco.

Making up more than 284,000 community members in 2010, the NHPI community in California is one of the largest NHPI populations in the United States.  The NHPI community,  a diverse group of ethnicities including, but not limited to, Guamanian/Chamorro, Native Hawaiian, Marshallese, Fijian, Samoan, and Tongan, continue to thrive as American citizens and American nationals in California and the greater United States.

“ACR 67 sends a strong message to our NHPI Californians that we acknowledge their sacrifices and contributions to the success of California,” stated Assembly member Furutani, “The preservation of our NHPI communities is critical to our state history, culture, and traditions.”

The 2010 Census Bureau data shows that NHPIs are continuing to become a growing part of our nation’s economy.  Between 2002 and 2007, NHPI-owned businesses saw a 31 percent growth in number, while United States businesses overall increased in number only 18 percent.  From 2000 to 2010, the NHPI community increased in population in California by 23.4 percent.

Assembly member Warren T. Furutani (D-South Los Angeles County) represents the 55th Assembly District, which includes the cities of Carson, Harbor City and the Harbor Gateway, Lakewood, parts of Long Beach, and Wilmington. He serves as chair of the Asian & Pacific Islander (API) Legislative Caucus.  Established in 2001, API Legislative Caucus aims to represent and advocate for the interests of the diverse API communities throughout California. Additionally, the Caucus seeks to increase API participation and representation in all levels of government.

Contact: Andrew Medina
(916) 319-3686

2011 Health Equity Summit

The Affordable Care Act and Beyond: Achieving Health Equity

September 17, 2011 8:30 – 4:30pm.

Oakland Asian Cultural Center

389 9th Street #290, Oakland, CA 94607

The Health Equity Summit examines strategies and policies aimed at giving everyone the best opportunity to reach the highest level of health. Achieving health equity requires valuing everyone equally with a focused effort of addressing avoidable inequalities, historical and contemporary injustices, and the elimination of health and health care disparities.

Racial and ethnic minorities still lag behind whites in many health outcome measures. Our communities are less likely to get the preventive care we need to stay healthy, more likely to suffer from serious illnesses, such as diabetes or heart disease, and when we do get sick, are less likely to have access to quality health care.

Social and economic policies have a direct impact on the health and well-being of everyone who lives, works, learns, and plays under those policies. Achieving health equity will require addressing impacts of our policy decisions – from housing and employment to education and transportation – on the health of our communities.

The push to provide affordable quality care came from the ground up and all across the health care system. Doctors, nurses, patients, businesses, hospitals, health care providers, community groups and policymakers at the national, state and local levels came together to modernize our system.

This effort continues as the Administration, policymakers and community health leaders work together to advance a health equity agenda.  With health care reform, millions of uninsured and underinsured Americans will receive health coverage, building the foundation for our continued efforts to eliminate racial and ethnic health and health care disparities. Our communities are working to ensure that implementation at the state level addresses health disparities and closes the gap on coverage.

These efforts go hand in hand with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) establishment of the National Partnership for Action to End Health Disparities and the National Stakeholder Strategy of Achieving Health Equity, two strategic plans that represent the country’s first coordinated roadmap to combating health disparities and to move the nation toward achieving health equity.

In addition, The Congressional Tri-Caucus – comprised by the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus, Congressional Black Caucus and Congressional Hispanic Caucus – is joining with communities across the nation to build on the gains provided by health care reform to address disparities in a more comprehensive and integrated way.  The Health Equity and Accountability Act of 2011 can provide the tools necessary to address these health inequities and ensure that health and health care disparities elimination are prioritized.

Together, our communities and our elected leaders will work to increase awareness of the significance of health disparities, their impact on the nation, and the actions necessary to improve health outcomes for racial, ethnic, and underserved populations; strengthen and broaden leadership for addressing health disparities at all levels; and ultimately improve health and health care outcomes for racial, ethnic, and underserved populations.

2011 Health Equity Summit: The Affordable Care Act and Beyond: Achieving Health Equity

September 17, 2011 8:30 – 4:30pm.

Oakland Asian Cultural Center, 389 9th Street #290, Oakland, CA 94607

On September 17th, members of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus, Congressional Hispanic Caucus, and Congressional Black Caucus will be in Oakland to identify policy solutions to address health disparities. Please join AAPCHO, APIAHF, SHIRE, CPEHN and many of our partners at the 2011 Health Equity Summit, “The Affordable Care Act and Beyond: Opportunities for Achieving Health Equity.” Register today!

To register, click here: healthequitysummit2011.eventbrite.com

More details soon!

A section by section analysis from the House Rules Committee can be also downloaded.

Families USA has been tracking the entire budget debate since May. If you’re interested in learning more about previously proposed plans and how it would have affected Medicare & Medicaid, take a look.

More About the Project

The Healthcare Disparities and Cultural Competency Consensus Standards project seeks to expand on NQF’s previous work where a set of criteria to evaluate disparities-sensitive measures was identified and 35 disparity-sensitive measures for the ambulatory care setting were endorsed (National Voluntary Consensus Standards for Ambulatory Care – Measuring Healthcare Disparities). This project will begin with a commissioned paper outlining the methodological concerns with measuring disparities, such as implications of risk adjustment and stratification, unintended consequences of public reporting, and data collection; and revising the NQF disparities-sensitive evaluation criteria. This commissioned paper will help inform future efforts on developing and endorsing performance measures for disparities and cultural competency.

Nominations are due by Friday, March, 18, at 6:00 pm ET and must be submitted online through the NQF website.

For more information and to submit your nominations, click here