WASHINGTON – An African-American medical association said Monday it will partner with African-American churches to help educate and enroll African-Americans in the Affordable Care Act.
The National Medical Association, a group that promotes equality in medicine for black doctors and patients, and Enroll America, a nonprofit founded by insurers, drug companies and patient advocacy groups to push health insurance enrollment, said their partnership with faith-based communities will focus on 11 states with high African-American populations and high populations of uninsured individuals.
Enroll America has worked in these states as part of their “Get Covered America” campaign, but the new partnership will work more closely with the NMA and communities.
(Jonathan Palmer/Medill News Service)
“The faith community is a tremendous part of African-American life,” said Etoy Ridgnal, the national African-American engagement director for Enroll America. “If we’re talking about reaching seven million uninsured African-Americans, working through black churches is a real value-add to make sure we’re reaching black folks.
According to Enroll America, 68 percent of African-Americans are not aware of subsidies and financial aid that would help pay for health insurance. Additionally, 80 percent of African-Americans do not know about the March 31 deadline for enrollment in the Affordable Care Act.
Individuals who apply after March 31 will pay a penalty up to the price of a bronze plan while families would pay $95 for each family member over age 18 and $47.50 each for children under 18.
The Rev. Miriam Burnett, president of the Resource and Promotion of Health Alliance, said that getting African-Americans enrolled before the March 31 deadline is crucial. Many African-Americans are not aware of their health care options, which contribute to many of the health disparities in the African American community.
“The health insurance that’s available through the Affordable Care Act and the market place are crucial for eliminating or greatly reducing health disparities and inequities,” Burnett said.
The partnership builds upon Enroll America’s “Health Care from the Pulpit” program, which works closely with African-American communities by using churches to spread the word about the Affordable Care Act.
Pastors preach about the effects of long-term lack of insurance; meanwhile, ACA employees are often at the churches to help people navigate the health insurance marketplace, according to Ridgnal.
“We’ve seen some great rewards from this partnership and we think NMA will take it to the next level,” Ridgnal said. “The NMA perspective is to now have doctors that are other trusted messengers in the African American community become a part of the effort.”
