California: Health Care

Overview
Latinos are the largest uninsured group in California. Latino children continue to have the highest uninsured rate (28%), which has not improved since 1994, and approximately 41% of Latino adults are without regular health care. One out of every two non citizens in California is uninsured due to low rates of job-based insurance and falling Medi-Cal coverage. Furthermore, many barriers prevent Latinos and immigrants from accessing health care even when they or their children are eligible for government-sponsored health programs. Many have confronted barriers such as untrained eligibility workers, lack of culturally and linguistically appropriate services, and complicated application and enrollment processes, and many are afraid that they may become a public charge if they access these health programs.

Unable to access and utilize health care is a serious public health issue. Latinos without access to health care are less healthy. To have a healthy and productive California, action needs to be taken to eliminate or reduce barriers that prevent the Latino and immigrant communities from accessing health care, and policy changes need to be made to ensure that all residents have access to quality health care.

NCLR Position
NCLR supports proposals that will reduce barriers and make health care more accessible to the Latino community, in particular provisions that will (1) expand health care to all residents of California; (2) provide adequate and appropriate cultural and linguistic services; (3) encourage employers to provide health benefits to all of their employees; (4) reach out to the Latino and immigrant communities about health care programs and public charge; (5) provide continuous training of eligibility workers and out-station them in the community; and (6) simplify the application and enrollment process.

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