APIAHF

At the Asian & Pacific Islander American Health Forum (APIAHF), we believe in the right to health. Health is a human right and as the primary means of accessing and financing care in the United States (U.S.), health coverage must be available to all persons residing in the country, regardless of their race, ethnicity, immigration status, the language they speak, where they live, how they identify and how much money they make. Health equity – the belief that everyone should have an opportunity at good health – drives our work and informs our values. Health equity is both a moral and economic imperative and critical to the U.S. being a nation with shared prosperity for all. As we look ahead to the next steps in coverage and access, health equity must be the overarching goal against which any policy is benchmarked.

In order to achieve health equity, we must work toward a system of universal coverage in the U.S. Having over 27 million people without coverage and a usual source of care and an estimated 44 million underinsured is in opposition to our values and undermines our public health. But universal coverage is only the starting point, not the end goal. Decades of work to identify and eliminate racial and ethnic health and health care disparities have made it clear that access to coverage is not enough. Policy proposals must tackle the multiple domains of health equity needed to create the conditions wherein every person lives a healthy life.

How to Evaluate Universal Coverage Proposals

APIAHF has developed this set of Principles against which to evaluate all proposals that aim to make a more just health care system. The Policy Options provide ways to determine if proposals align with our Principles and the needs of our families and communities. Decision makers, advocates, and community members should use these tools to determine if implementation were to occur, would the outcomes be different for Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders and other diverse populations?

APIAHF BELIEVES IN:

Dignity of all people.
Universal right to health.
Values of respect, equity, fairness, compassion and kindness.
Importance of culture.
Expansive definitions of health, including what determines if one is healthy or not.

 

Download

Getting to Universal Coverage (Long)

Public Health Alerts, Testimony and Comments

HOW TO EVALUATE UNIVERSAL COVERAGE PROPOSALS APIAHF has developed this set of Principles against which to evaluate all proposals that aim to make a more just health care system. The Policy Options provide ways to determine if proposals align with our Principles and the needs of our families and communities. Decision makers, advocates, and community…