The Affordable Care Act includes expansion of Medicare and Medicaid; full implementation of the law, however, will be vitally important to the health and economic well-being of diverse populations. Funding should be directed to ensure significant outreach to low-income and diverse communities, so that the new benefits of Medicaid and Medicare and other expanded programs actually reach them.
According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, “[t]he Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, contains many provisions that will likely impact the health of and health care received by people of color. Chief among them are the expansions in coverage, since people of color are disproportionately represented among the uninsured. While the coverage expansions promulgated by the health reform law will not be sufficient to eliminate health disparities, they are a necessary first step.”
This excerpt is taken from Securing Our Future: Advancing Economic Security for Diverse Elders, by the Insight Center for Community Economic Development. Read the full report >>