Publish Date:   March 4, 2026 Type:  Testimony and Comments, Comment Letter Topics:  Public Charge, Immigration Ethnicity: Language:  English State: The Asian & Pacific Islander American Health Forum (APIAHF) and its national Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) partners Association of Asian Pacific Community Health Organizations, Asian Pacific Partners for Empowerment, Advocacy, and Leadership, Diverse Elders Coalition, National Asian Pacific Center on Aging, and National Council of Asian Pacific Islander Physicians strongly urge the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to withdraw its proposed rule to rescind the 2022 final rule on public charge, which clarified and codified the decades-long understanding and administration of the policy. This proposed rule has significant impacts beyond decisions about immigration status, is outside the scope of DHS’ statutory authority, and cannot be justified.

Publish Date:   February 23, 2026 Type:  Testimony and Comments, Comment Letter Topics:  Artificial Intelligence, AI, Health Care, Clinical Care Ethnicity: Language:  English State: The Asian & Pacific Islander American Health Forum (APIAHF) submitted a comment to HHS to highlight critical considerations for Artificial Intelligence (AI) security and guardrails, workforce impacts and transparency as the Department of Health and Human Services considers AI adoption as part of clinical care.   The healthcare industry was amongst the first to explore AI applications and earlier adopters to deploy AI to scale – from clinical workflows to insurance approvals and other automated applications – utilizing AI at more than twice the rate of the broader economy. [1][2]  AI has already transformed the healthcare landscape, and to disregard its impacts, both positive and negative, can only harm patients.    With a national network of over 300 community-based organizational partners in 44 states and territories, APIAHF is the nation’s oldest national health advocacy organization dedicated to improving the health and well-being of over 26.4 million Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders (AANHPIs) who would be affected by these technologies.

Publish Date:   February 4, 2026 Type:  Webinar Topics:  Vaccine Safety, Vaccine Access, Health Care Access Ethnicity: Language:   English State: This panel discussion examined vaccine safety and access at a critical moment for public health. Panelists explored barriers to equitable vaccine access and discussed why science-based practices are essential to protecting children, families, and communities, particularly concerning infectious diseases like hepatitis B and tuberculosis that remain persistent challenges for underrepresented communities like Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders.

APIAHF - Press Releases READ MORE APIAHF RESPONSE TO THE STATE OF THE UNION ADDRESS FEBRUARY 24, 2026 READ MORE APIAHF APPLAUDS THE PASSAGE OF THE FY2026 DEPARTMENTS OF LABOR, HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES, AND EDUCATION, AND RELATED AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS ACT FEBRUARY 5, 2026 READ MORE APIAHF APPLAUDS INTRODUCTION OF BILL CODIFYING LANGUAGE ACCESS RIGHTS JANUARY 23, 2026 READ MORE HOUSE FAILURE TO EXTEND ACA TAX CREDITS WILL DRIVE UP HEALTH CARE COSTS DECEMBER 19, 2025 READ MORE APIAHF & NCAPIP STATEMENT ON VOTE TO END UNIVERSAL HEPATITIS B SHOTS FOR NEWBORNS DECEMBER 5, 2025 READ MORE “THIS IS ABOUT SAVING LIVES”: MEMBERS OF CONGRESS AND CIVIL RIGHTS ADVOCATES JOINED PROTECT OUR CARE TO HIGHLIGHT IMPACTS OF GOP HEALTH CARE CRISIS ON COMMUNITIES OF COLOR OCTOBER 22, 2025 READ MORE APIAHF RELEASES NEW PULSE SURVEY REVEALING DEEPENING CRISIS AMONG AANHPI COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS AUGUST 22, 2025 READ MORE 60 YEARS LATER, MEDICARE AND MEDICAID CUTS THREATEN HEALTH CARE ACCESS FOR ASIAN AMERICAN, NATIVE HAWAIIAN, AND PACIFIC ISLANDER COMMUNITIES JULY 30, 2025 READ MORE APIAHF ALARMED BY DOJ GUIDANCE UNDERMINING LEP PROTECTIONS FOLLOWING EXECUTIVE ORDER 14224 JULY 18, 2025 READ MORE APIAHF CONDEMNS ENACTMENT OF H.R. 1 “ONE BIG BEAUTIFUL BILL ACT,” SLASHING MEDICAID AND ELIMINATING HEALTH COVERAGE FOR MILLIONS JULY 4, 2025 READ MORE APIAHF APPLAUDS SUPREME COURT DECISION PRESERVING NO-COST PREVENTIVE SERVICES, RAISES CONCERN OVER HHS ADMINISTRATIVE CONTROL OF TASK FORCE JUNE 27, 2025 READ MORE APIAHF CONDEMNS TRUMP-ERA DISCLOSURE OF MEDICAID DATA TO IMMIGRATION ENFORCEMENT JUNE 13, 2025 PRESS RELEASES — EDUCATIONAL DIGITAL INITIATIVES RESOURCES UPDATES PRESS RELEASES UPDATES PRESS RELEASES — MORE

FEBRUARY 5, 2026 PRESS RELEASE APIAHF APPLAUDS THE PASSAGE OF THE FY2026 DEPARTMENTS OF LABOR, HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES, AND EDUCATION, AND RELATED AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS ACT FEBRUARY 5, 2026 WASHINGTON — The Asian & Pacific Islander American Health Forum (APIAHF) issued a statement in response to the passage of the Fiscal Year 2026 Labor, Health and Human Services (HHS), and Education, and Related Agencies spending bill, which became law this week as part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2026 (H.R. 7148). Juliet K. Choi, President and CEO of APIAHF gave the following statement: “We applaud Congress for taking decisive, bipartisan action to fund critical health programs in the FY2026 Labor-HHS-Education appropriations bill – investments that are vital to the nation’s long-term health and wellbeing. “This bill sustains and, in some cases, increases much-needed funding for healthcare workforce training, biomedical research, new directives to address the mental health needs for Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander youth. It also reaffirms a strong commitment to the Health Resources and Services Administration and its Health Centers Program—a cornerstone of the nation’s healthcare safety net that delivers essential primary and preventive care to millions of patients nationwide. APIAHF has consistently advocated for robust investments in these vital programs that directly serve our communities. “Beyond investments in public health infrastructure, congressional leaders bolstered language access services, including directing HHS to develop best practices for improving telehealth access for people with limited English proficiency. “The FY26 Appropriations Act reflects tireless advocacy—from national coalitions to state and local partners, and from constituents across the country—calling on Congress to legislate in ways that reflect the diverse needs of our communities. This action represents meaningful progress, and we look forward to continued collaboration with the 119th Congress to build on these gains.” # # # Achieving health equity for Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander communities through law, policy and practice. BACK TO PRESS RELEASES Next Item Previous Item BACK TO PRESS RELEASES

APRIL 10, 2025 PRESS RELEASE HOUSE PASSAGE OF THE SAVE ACT: A DIRECT THREAT TO AANHPI VOTER ACCESS APRIL 10, 2025 WASHINGTON —The Asian & Pacific Islander American Health Forum (APIAHF) condemns today’s passage of the SAVE Act (H.R. 22) in the U.S. House of Representatives—if enacted into law—it would disenfranchise millions of eligible voters, particularly from Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) communities. Further, this will disproportionately harm voters who live in rural areas, especially in the Midwest and South; along with those with accessibility needs including elders. The legislation would require voters to present documentation—such as a birth certificate or passport—to register or update voter registration in person, which may result in people having to drive needless hours to vote. It would also eliminate online registration in 42 states, harm vote-by-mail initiatives, and make commonly accepted forms of ID, like REAL IDs, military IDs, or tribal IDs, insufficient to prove citizenship. Juliet K. Choi, president & CEO of APIAHF, issued the following statement: “The passage of the SAVE Act is a dangerous step backward for our democracy and brings us back to the time of a poll tax. Rather than safeguarding elections, this legislation erects new barriers to the ballot box—disproportionately harming communities like ours that already face systemic obstacles to voting. “AANHPI voters have long been impacted by discriminatory practices like voter purges of eligible voters due to minor discrepancies in name spellings. These bureaucratic errors have silenced thousands of our voices at the polls. This bill would worsen those barriers by undermining state-level solutions that are beginning to fix the problem. “AANHPI communities—especially naturalized citizens and first-generation voters—are also among the highest users of vote-by-mail and online registration systems. In 2020, over 60 percent of Asian American voters cast ballots by mail, and online registration has been a critical entry point for our communities to participate in civic life. “Let’s be clear: this is not about election security. This is about restricting access and silencing voices. We call on the Senate to reject this harmful and unnecessary legislation.” APIAHF remains committed to protecting the rights of all Americans—regardless of race, language, or immigration background—to access free and fair elections. # # # Achieving health equity for Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander communities through law, policy and practice. BACK TO PRESS RELEASES Next Item Previous Item BACK TO PRESS RELEASES