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The Center for Pan Asian Community Services stands alongside its national and regional partners in supporting quality, affordable healthcare for all. On September 29, 2009, CPACS, along with 29 organizations representing Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander communities, signed a letter addressed to Senator Max Baucus of the Senate Committee on Finance requesting important provisions that would ensure quality, affordable health care for all be included in health care reform. To learn more about healthcare reform and ways you can help, please go to http://www.whitehouse.gov/issues/health_care/ and http://www.apiahf.org/index.php/policy/take-action.html September 29, 2009
The Honorable Max Baucus Senate Committee on Finance Chairman 219 Dirksen Senate Office Building Washington, D.C. 20510
Dear Chairman Baucus: Thank you for your continued efforts in bringing about critically needed reforms to this nation's healthcare system. However, we, the undersigned organizations representing Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander communities, are concerned that the current provisions in the America's Healthy Future Act of 2009 will not provide quality, affordable health care to a large segment of Americans, especially to underserved populations. As you and your staff move forward with this important and historic work, we urge you to incorporate the following proposals into health care reform as critical and necessary steps towards ensuring that we reach our eventual goal of guaranteed, affordable health care for all. EQUAL ACCESS FOR FUTURE AMERICANS Legal immigrants contribute to this nation's workforce, pay their fair share of taxes, and work towards achieving citizenship. Immigrants comprise 63% of the Asian American population and almost 20% of the Pacific Islander population. Providing this population with access to affordable, quality care will mean a stronger national workforce and less reliance on emergency room visits, the costs of which would be shifted to all others with health insurance. Changes to the status quo must occur to achieve these goals. Reforms must include the elimination of the current five-year waiting period imposed on legal immigrants who need to access Medicaid and, in many states, the Children's Health Insurance Program. The Senate must also resist attempts to impose a waiting period on legal immigrants before they can receive health care affordability tax credits. Similarly, sponsors of legal immigrants should not be tasked with shouldering the costs of health insurance for the immigrants they sponsor. This framework would only increase the population for which health care costs are too high. Reforms should treat current and future Americans equitably, thereby leading to the healthiest possible future for this nation. NO ADDITIONAL BARRIERS TO COVERAGE Health care reform must focus on promoting greater access to health care coverage and avoid instituting systems that would create additional barriers that prevent minority and immigrant communities from receiving the care they need. Current citizenship verification measures have already prevented many Americans from accessing Medicaid. Studies have shown that such requirements have a disparate impact on American citizens who are low-income individuals, minorities, women, or elderly--populations that lack ready access to proper citizenship documentation or photo identification. We must ensure that any verification measures put in place create minimal burdens and include significant due process safeguards. Moreover, any such system should continue to be studied to determine whether the system is preventing those who are eligible for health care from receiving coverage. AFFORDABLE COVERAGE FOR WORKING CLASS FAMILIES With premiums rising at twice the rate of wages, working class families require affordable health insurance options that will provide comprehensive benefits and quality health care services. Of critical importance to these families is the care that health reform will provide for their children. As a nation, we must ensure that children and pregnant women can access affordable, quality care. The continuation of the Children's Health Insurance Program past its 2013 expiration date will help to ensure they receive such care, as proposals to simply place them in the Exchange with wrap-around benefits will likely be less effective. The current framework also falls short when it comes to affordable coverage for children. Under your proposal, American and legal immigrant children in mixed-citizenship status households will receive less affordable care than children in citizen parent households. Under AHFA, income from undocumented household members will be included in determining household income, but undocumented household members will not be included in determining household size. As a result, these children will receive fewer benefits than other citizen children with the same household income. Finally, the current economic crisis has shown us the problem with over-reliance on employer-provided health care for affordable coverage. Working class families need to be able to purchase affordable, quality coverage independent of their employment status. The establishment of a public health insurance option will make great strides in this respect. The public option will provide a benchmark for cost and quality, and increase the health care options for working class families. We, the undersigned, understand the difficulties that you and your esteemed colleagues face in passing health care reform, but believe that the changes we propose will only enhance the quality, access, and affordability of health care proposals. We urge you to ensure that AHFA is amended to reflect these changes. Respectfully, National Organizations Asian American Justice Center Asian & Pacific Islander American Health Forum Asian Pacific American Legal Center Association of Asian Pacific Community Health Organizations Japanese American Citizens League Laotian American National Alliance, Inc. National Asian American Pacific Islander Mental Health Association National Asian Pacific American Families Against Substance Abuse National Asian Pacific American Women's Forum National Korean American Service & Education Consortium OCA South Asian Americans Leading Together Summit Health Institute for Research and Education, Inc.
Arizona Asian Pacific Community in Action
Georgia Center for Pan Asian Community Services Hawaii Ke Ali`i Maka`ainana Hawaiian Civic Club Maryland/Washington, DC Counselors Helping (South) Asians, Inc (CHAI) Massachusetts South Cove Community Health Center
Michigan MAI Family Services Minnesota Minnesota Asian/American Health Coalition SEWA-AIFW New York Coalition for Asian American Children & Families Project CHARGE Ohio Asian Services in Action Oregon Asian Pacific American Network of Oregon
Pennsylvania
AIDS Services In Asian Communities Texas Asian American Health Coalition of Greater Houston Utah National Tongan-American Society
Washington
International Community Health Services Washington Community Action Network
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