California Health Plans Have Just 100 Days To Comply With Language Assistance Program Requirements Of Senate Bill 853

Main Category: Psychology / Psychiatry
Article Date: 27 Mar 2008 - 1:00 PDT

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The countdown begins today as California managed health care plans have just 100 days before the state deadline to file amendments to their quality assurance programs providing written language assistance program policies and procedures. This deadline brings millions of health plan enrollees with limited English proficiency (LEP) one step closer to the goal of equal access to health care treatment and services.

In 2003, the California legislature passed Senate Bill 853 mandating that all health plans in the state provide LEP enrollees with language assistance services. To ensure compliance with the new requirements and standards outlined in Title 28 of the California Code of Regulations, managed health care plans have until July 1, 2008 to file in writing their proposed standards in four areas -- enrollee assessment, provision of language assistance services, staff training, and compliance monitoring.

"The passage of SB 853 was an important turning point for the delivery of health care in California," explains Louis Provenzano, President and COO of Language Line Services, the leading provider of language services. "It was like taking a sledgehammer to the wall dividing LEP health plan enrollees from the quality health care they deserve. We are all working together to bring down that wall."

Language Line Services is consulting with several health plans around the state to help them comply with the requirements of SB 853. The company's SB 853 Compliance Program addresses all the components needed to ensure a well-rounded and comprehensive language assistance program, including policy planning and development, 24/7 access to interpreters in 170 spoken languages and American Sign Language, member outreach and customer service, document translation, medical interpreter certification, and compliance auditing, among other services.

"Each step taken by California health plans to comply with SB 853 brings us that much closer to our collective goal of eliminating the language barriers that put millions of health plan enrollees at risk, as well as help reduce health care disparities," adds José Martín, Language Services Manager and Health Disparities Initiative Leader for Contra Costa Health Services in Martinez, California.

"Many of California's approximately 120 full-service and specialized health plans are preparing to submit their language assistance programs in writing to the Department of Managed Health Care," reports Jeanette Anders, Health Care Director with Language Line Services. "The health plans we work with such as Aetna, Blue Cross of California, and Kaiser Foundation, are diligently working to develop and finalize comprehensive language assistance programs for limited English proficient enrollees and making great progress."

According to the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research, 3.4 million of California's adult HMO enrollees (ages 18 to 64) speak a language other than English at home. Of those, almost 30 percent report not being able to speak English well or not at all. This population will see the efforts of California health plans come to fruition by January 1, 2009, the state's deadline for health plans to implement their language assistance programs.

Top 10 Most Requested Foreign Languages in California

1. Spanish
2. Cantonese
3. Mandarin
4. Vietnamese
5. Korean
6. Russian
7. Farsi
8. Arabic
9. Punjabi
10. Tagalog

(1) Based on Language Line Services' demographic data 2007-2008

About Language Line Services

Language Line Services, the global leader in telephone interpreting and total language solutions, serves clients in government, health care, telecom, financial services, insurance and many other industries by quickly connecting them to their customers, patients and sales prospects in over 170 spoken languages and American sign language. Growth of the language interpreting industry has soared with increased immigration and government regulatory policies mandating that organizations provide services to limited English speakers in their own languages. Language Line Services is recognized as a trusted partner to thousands of clients throughout the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom, providing access to the industry's fastest language interpreting service at highly competitive rates. For more information about Language Line Services' suite of dynamic solutions spanning telephone and video interpreting, document translation, interactive software-based translation, interpreter training and certification programs and regulatory compliance objectives, please call +1 (877) 886-3885 or visit http://www.languageline.com.