The Gap Between Health Insurance & Hispanics

The Wall Street Journal reported this week that 1/4 of the Hispanics in the United States did not have health insurance (view article). Furthermore, the percentage of Hispanics without health insurance that enrolled for coverage under the Affordable Care Act lagged behind the enrollment statistics for other ethnic groups. Reasons for these numbers included problems with the Spanish version of the health care website (CuidadoDeSalud.gov), a limited number of Spanish-speaking ACA enrollment advisors, and, despite assurances to the contrary, concerns among legally qualified Latinos that enrolling would jeopardize family members who were in this country illegally. During this second enrollment period, many organizations will be directing their attention to enrolling a greater percentage of eligible Hispanics.