Champions of Change Blog

Connecting Muslims to Coverage

Khadija Gurnah is being honored as an Affordable Care Act Champion of Change.

There are a number of cultural, language, and financial barriers that prevent the traditional government messaging and resource dissemination strategies from reaching the Muslim community. These barriers vary greatly with each local community, as Muslim Americans represent diverse socioeconomic strata, immigration statuses, cultures, ethnicities, languages, histories, and religious approaches and interpretations. Assistance that is tailored to these diverse needs is critical to any effective public health initiative in the Muslim community.

American Muslim Health Professionals (AMHP) is a national, non-profit organization of American Muslims in health professions. During the last period of Open Enrollment, our goal was to cater to the needs of the uninsured Muslim population by promoting awareness of the benefits of the Affordable Care Act.

To achieve this, we had a two-pronged approach to outreach. At a grassroots level, we implemented enrollment campaigns in individual states. At a national level, we served as a resource for information and coordinated National Muslim Enrollment Weekend with a coalition of Muslim organizations.

At a grassroots level, we recruited “Community Liaisons” in seven states. The liaisons worked with their local faith communities to host enrollment and outreach events. We recognized that our communities needed cultural ambassadors to encourage their local faith communities to host events. Our most effective cultural ambassadors were recent graduates from health fields. They were excited, passionate, and well-established within their communities. AMHP also supported volunteers and partner organizations across the nation by connecting them with local Navigators and providing resources such as event planning guides, outreach materials tailored to Muslim communities, flyers, sign-up sheets, and a Jumah Khutba guide for imams to discuss the Affordable Care Act during sermons.

We established a clear tracking plan to help us keep metrics on outreach. We sent out a very simple form to anyone who planned to host an enrollment event. We also followed up afterward with another form. The form tracked attendance and enrollment and included a thank you to everyone for their time and commitment. We used the tracking form to update an online events page that allowed people to find enrollment events in their area.

We were also part of a national coalition of Muslim organizations that facilitated national Muslim Enrollment weekend. Together, we rolled out the first national health campaign targeting the Muslim community. We partnered with amazing facilitators at Get Covered America and the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships to reach as many Muslim Americans as possible.

We were met with overwhelming support from the Muslim community. Over the course of the enrollment period, we made contact with 27,116 people and enrolled 1,662 people in high-quality, affordable health insurance plans.

As we prepare for the next enrollment period, we are looking forward to building upon our existing infrastructure to reach new communities across the nation. It is an honor to be part of this moment in our nation’s history and to help address the needs of our nation’s uninsured.

Khadija Gurnah is the Program Manager for the American Muslim Health Professionals’ Affordable Care Act outreach and enrollment efforts.

Bringing the Benefits of Health Insurance to Low- and Moderate-Income Americans

Bill Forbes is being honored as an Affordable Care Act Champion of Change.

All public service volunteer activities have the potential to be highly rewarding. It’s particularly gratifying, though, when one’s volunteer work addresses the underlying cause of an important societal need. That’s how I see my work with Get Covered America. The mission of GCA is to encourage uninsured Americans and legal residents to get enrolled in a health insurance plan through the Healthcare Marketplace established by the Affordable Care Act.

The primary objective of the ACA is to bring the benefits of health insurance to a larger fraction of Americans, in particular to those living in poverty or near poverty. Without health insurance, families already struggling to achieve economic security could be overwhelmed by health care costs at any time.

Get Covered America focuses its efforts on outreach and education. In partnership with a wide spectrum of educational, religious, and service organizations, we reach out to the uninsured with information about their options for high-quality, affordable health insurance under the Healthcare Marketplace.

Among the uninsured, lack of knowledge about the provisions of the ACA is a major barrier to getting enrolled. A study commissioned by Get Covered America conducted shortly after the first Open Enrollment period found that only 26% of those who did not enroll were aware that the law gives financial help in the form of tax subsidies to low- and moderate-income Americans. The study found that only 28% of those who did not enroll were aware that free in-person enrollment assistance was available and that less than half who did not enroll knew that health plans cannot deny people coverage based on pre-existing conditions.

We provide that information and more to individuals we meet at public events, at schools, at houses of worship, and through our many partner organizations, including health institutions and social service groups. In addition, we refer these individuals to the various local agencies that provide in-person enrollment assistance. One of the hallmarks of our program is follow-up, by phone and email, with the people we meet who express a need and desire to get enrolled. Working with GCA, I have found that follow-up beyond the initial contact very significantly increases the likelihood that an individual will complete the enrollment process.

It is a source of tremendous satisfaction for me and the many other GCA volunteers and staff to know that the lives of many of the people we help will be improved in concrete and long-lasting ways.

Bill Forbes is a volunteer with the Get Covered America campaign.