California Pan-Ethnic Health Network
For Immediate Release
March 23, 2021
Contact: Monika Lee (858) 353-7271
Sacramento, CA – Today, the California Pan-Ethnic Health Network released the following statement on the 11th anniversary of President Barack Obama signing the Affordable Care Act into law.
“The Affordable Care Act continues to be the biggest, most historic piece of legislation to expand health care and coverage. Today, we celebrate its 11th anniversary and look forward to the work ahead to ensure everyone has access to health care regardless of their income, sex, race, ethnicity, primary language, LGBTQ+ status, disability or immigration status.
“Before the ACA, communities of color were most likely to be uninsured, making up 74% of those uninsured. While disparities still exist, due to systemic racism, the ACA significantly helped to close the coverage gap, cutting uninsurance rates by more than half for Asian Americans and African Americans between 2013 and 2015 and reducing rates for Latinos at slightly lower rates.
“California led the way in codifying many of the protections found in the ACA, like protecting women, LGBTQ+ people, and people with disabilities from discrimination. The ACA continues to ensure those with pre-existing conditions, including COVID-19 have access to affordable health care.
“There is more work to be done. The American Rescue Plan greatly expands health care affordability and coverage, but only temporarily. The federal law will significantly reduce the share of income that consumers must pay towards their premiums and allows anyone receiving Unemployment Income in 2021 to pay 0% of their monthly income towards their coverage. We must push to make many of these changes permanent. At the state level, we must continue to advocate for Health4All to ensure everyone, regardless of immigration status, has access to life saving care.”
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