AAPI Nexus: Policy, Practice and Community

This paper summarizes the federal requirements under Section 4302(a) of the Affordable Care Act (ACA); the opportunities for improving data collection to address health disparities affecting Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders; the provision’s limitations; and how to address these limitations. Our recommendations for ACA Section 4302(a) implementation include: (1) adhering to the 2009 Institute of Medicine’s data standards on race, ethnicity, and primary language; (2) requiring federally-supported national surveys, health care providers, and publicly-administered health programs at the point of care and enrollment to comply with Section 4302 requirements; (3) ensuring compliance with Title VI and ACA Section 1557 non-discrimination requirements by providing translated health surveys and increasing language assistance capacity; and (4) engaging communities in the design of race, ethnicity, and language data to ensure community relevance.