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Best Practices in Engaging the LGBT Community on the Affordable Care Act

August 1, 2014 at 11:30 AM ET by Gautam Raghavan

Across America, the Affordable Care Act is having a tremendous, positive impact on the health, wellbeing, and economic security of millions of Americans, including LGBT people and their families. Many members of the LGBT community face limited access to health care and insurance, and are less likely to get the preventive care they need to stay healthy. The Affordable Care Act directly addresses some of these needs. That’s why, during the first open enrollment period -- from October 1, 2013 to March 30, 2014 -- LGBT leaders and organizations at the national, state, and local level worked hard to raise awareness of the Affordable Care Act and get members of their communities covered. (Need examples? Click here.)

But our work is not yet done. November 15, 2014 marks the start of a second open enrollment period – another critically important 3-month period to get LGBT people access to quality, affordable health care. And in the meantime, some members of the community (including young people who were #Bornin88) can still sign up for coverage through Special Enrollment Periods.

To prepare for this important work, last week, the White House Office of Public Engagement and the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services hosted a briefing for LGBT, HIV/AIDS, and health advocates to discuss best practices, innovative strategies, and new resources to help LGBT communities get covered. The briefing also included the release of a new report from the Out2Enroll campaign, which looked in-depth at LGBT community engagement efforts from the first open enrollment period. The report assesses promising practices, identifies remaining concerns, and offers concrete recommendations to help the marketplaces and other stakeholders effectively connect LGBT people with their new coverage options. Click here to read Out2Enroll’s report.

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