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February 2012 eNewsletter

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APIAHF's Policy eNewsletter

February 2012
Welcome to the February edition of the Asian & Pacific Islander American Health Forum’s Policy E-Newsletter.  Each month’s newsletter features a compilation of new reports, briefs, and other resources related to timely Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander health policy issues.

This edition features information on the outlook for President Obama’s 2013 Budget, Supreme Court briefs on the Affordable Care Act (ACA), and final Administration rules regarding coverage of contraception. We hope you find these resources useful.  As always, we welcome your feedback about issues that might be of interest for future editions.

Highlights

Health Groups Strongly Support the Affordable Care Act in the Supreme Court
Last week, the Asian & Pacific Islander American Health Forum, along with 39 partner organizations, showed its support of the Affordable Care Act by filing an amicus brief with the United States Supreme Court. Our brief tells the real-world stories of how the law is working and will continue to improve the health of AA and NHPI individuals across the country. Many other health advocacy groups filed briefs on the minimum coverage and other provisions of the Affordable Care Act. The Center for American Progress summarizes the briefs for and against the law, and gives a synopsis of health organizations’ briefs, concluding that every “non-ideological” health group filing a brief was in favor of the Affordable Care Act. The Supreme Court will hear arguments in March 2012 and is expected to issue a decision later in the summer.

President Obama Releases FY 2013 Budget
The President recently released his Fiscal Year 2013 Budget. The White House Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders provides this fact sheet with highlights for Asian American and Pacific Islander families.  The broader impact of the budget on health and health care programs is laid out in the Department of Health and Human Services’ “Budget in Brief.” The budget includes targeted investments designed to fully implement the Affordable Care Act and address the disproportionate effect HIV/AIDS has on communities of color. While we appreciate the President’s efforts to combat health and health care disparities within Asian American, Native Hawaiian, Pacific Islander and other vulnerable communities, we are concerned to see a number of spending reductions and freezes to critical health-related programs. Read more about APIAHF’s take on the President’s budget here.

HHS Releases Final Rule on Contraception Guarantee

On February 15, the Department of Health and Human Services released a final rule requiring group insurance plans to cover a range of women’s preventive health services, including birth control, at no cost. The rule also exempts a narrow category of religious employers from having to cover certain preventive health services under the provisions of the Affordable Care Act.  APIAHF supports this rule, which will guarantee that women have access to preventive health care, including contraception without expensive co-pays, regardless of where they work or go to school.  Asian American women have lower contraceptive utilization rates due, in part, to cost. Removing the cost barrier to contraceptives and other women’s preventive health services will help AA and NHPI women get the care they need.

The Kaiser Family Foundation provides this helpful analysis of how the rule will work in practice, answering questions such as who will be covered under the rule and whether tiered systems for co-payments will be permitted.
The Asian & Pacific Islander American Health Forum influences policy, mobilizes communities, and strengthens programs and organizations to improve the health of Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders. Learn more at http://www.apiahf.org/.

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