In order for health reform to work in California, it needs to work in each of California’s diverse communities–especially those that have disproportionate needs, like the Hmong community of the Central Valley.
Recently, Health Access collaborated with the Fresno Interdenominational Refugees Ministries (FIRM) to organize an Affordable Care Act (ACA) forum in Fresno, Ca. This forum was specifically designed to inform the Hmong community about the Affordable Care Act and how the new law will affect them, their families, and their community.
Jonathan Tran, California Policy and Program Manager from SEARAC
Nenick Vu, Project Coordinator from Hmong Health Collaborative
Rose Auguste, Northern California Regional Organizer from Health Access
Sharon Stanley, Excutive Director of FIRM
Donna Taylor, Director of Behavioral Health from FresnoCounty
Our panelists presented on the different areas of the ACA such as the Health Exchange, the Low Income Health Program (LIHP) specifically in Fresno, and Mental Health services covered by the ACA. In addition, our intern, Nancy Xiong developed a culturally and linguistically sensitive video presentation on the ACA in Hmong. The video presentation did a great job of summarizing and bringing together the different areas of the ACA that the panelist presented on.
Despite the 109-degree weather in Fresno, we had about 50 monolingual Hmong elders who attended our ACA forum. These community members often attend FIRM workshops and events and live nearby. Palee from Healthy House Merced was the interpreter for our event. Following the forum, FIRM reported that many of the Hmong elders who attended our forum expressed their gratitude for us organizing the forum. In addition, they were eager to learn more about how they can continue to better prepare themselves for the healthcare changes in 2014.
Here is the link to the ACA video presentation in Hmong: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V9w6e5f8kDQ&feature=youtu.be
Health Access will continue to focus on the Central Valley in specific, and to the diversity of California in general, as we proceed with our work to maximize the benefits of health reform.
Health Access California promotes quality, affordable health care for all Californians.