Some Real Stories on Health Care: Share?

Hello, all.

Julie McKinney, SME for the Health Literacy CoP, has opened a discussion on her community forum on sharing stories on accessing - or not - medical care through the Affordable Care Act (AFA).  She welcomes the Adult English Language Learner (ELL) CoP to share stories as well.  I will post  a story, myself, later today. It would be great to hear from you as to how/if you have been using AFA with your English language learners: What have you done? What have you heard from your students? How can we help them access these services? Thanks, Miriam

Hi Everyone,

As you may know, March 31 was the end of the enrollment period to sign up for health insurance. This was the time for people who did not have health insurance to sign up for some. This is a new requirement of all citizens under the Affordable Care Act, so many people who are very new to the idea of having health insurance have just signed up. We are trying to learn from people's experiences enrolling in health insurance, and trying to figure out how to use it.

So we are collecting stories! I am asking teachers to please ask around in your classes, and see if you can get some students to tell or write up a story about an experience related to the new Affordable Care Act or signing up for insurance. Or you could share a story about an interaction you have had, either in class or in your own.

Here are some examples from people who work in health care. We can only imagine how much worse it is for people who struggle with literacy, or who are just learning English.

I am a health care reform activist failure. 25 years of advocacy, years of just trying to help explain what our current law means. ...I worked with a grateful disability community to understand the ACA... I spoke to groups. I attended citizen advocacy events. I organized professional webinars focusing on health literacy and the ACA. I felt pretty good. I was helping communicate complex information to consumers and professionals.

Then, I tried to get an uninsured relative to sign-up on Healthcare.gov. I learned from her that the government would "plant a chip in you" and it would be "too expensive" no matter what! I did research on health plan options in her community, offered advice, offered to pay for the first month's premium myself! But I lived in another state and had to just watch the enrollment deadline get closer, then pass. I helped a lot of motivated disabled people in my own state. But I don't feel triumphant because I was unable to communicate the benefits to one uninsured family member.

Here's another:

The fully adult mechanical engineer with a significant health history...has been very negative about “Obamacare”. Recently he was mystified but delighted to see his premiums and copays plummet. He made no connection to Obamacare or the ACA.

Please share your own story, or some from your students! These stories can be powerful and useful.

Thanks,

Julie

Comments

Hi, all.

Before I begin my post, I want to disclose that I and my family have benefited greatly from health care benefits provided by non-profit jobs I have held since 1989.

So, here goes.

As the story Julie told us about the mechanical engineer shows, there is often a huge disconnect between people's reactions to AFA and the knowledge of what they can potentially, or already do receive from the act.

There is also a disconnect often between people’s reaction to the idea of universal health care - health care for all - and the health care benefits they themselves and their families already receive. The health care plans offered by one’s (or one’s spouse’s) place of employment, are often quite spectacular. And, especially, but not only in this government town, DC, these plans are also well subsidized. That is to say, the employer puts in a large share of the cost.

Okay, here's my story, after that rather lengthy preamble: Last fall, when the government was shut down due to the "Obamacare" fight, I made the mistake of saying to a wealthy, educated acquaintance whose husband worked in government that I thought it was a shame that making health care available to all had closed the government. She replied by saying “Well, do you want the government choosing your health care?” I was stunned and just replied, “If I didn’t have any health care at all, I would rather the government gave me the options of some affordable care than having none at all.”

Anyway, that’s the message, I think, that needs to be out there and to share with our students: With AFA, affordable healthcare is no longer just for those of us lucky enough to be employed and to have it made available to us on the job. It is available to everyone. And it’s the law.

Okay off my soapbox.

Awaiting your stories?

Miriam

I'm surprised that you're surprised that educated people have a different opinion on AFA. Half the country (48% at the latest poll) find it problematic. It is not, by far, the great deal they tried to make us believe it would be.  It has cost millions of people, mostly the elderly, their insurance.  It has caused companies to revert to hiring fewer full-time workers and more part-time workers. It has raised the premiums for most others, including myself and the rest of my family, because it requires absurd things like maternity coverage for women who have had hysterectomies. (This is one of my pet peeves.)  Not to mention that it circumvented the way the government is supposed to work by changing what was passed as a law to purchase a commodity into a tax penalty for not doing so (which is still a bone of contention for me.) As far as making healthcare accessible "to everyone," many of my low income students LOST benefits and cannot afford the family rates offered through the government portal. They are financially in a worse position with regard to their health services.  Personally, I hope more states start banning "Obamacare." 


I do not think it is our job to "tow the government line."

HOWEVER, it is also not my job to think for my students.  They should research it (not just based on hearsay) and make up their own minds.  I'd suggest making a project out of it. Maybe they'll come up with a better way to secure global healthcare in the United States. At the very least, it would make for a great in-class debate.

Peace, 
Glenda

I'm glad to see we've opened up this discussion in the adult ELL forum.  I have not heard any learner stories, but I haven't been asking.  I think there are issues with AFA that could affect immigrants, such as access if one is not a full citizen or navigating a difficult web site.  Perhaps the first step, at least for me,  is to begin asking questions.  I agree that there are many misconceptions about what AFA is and is not.  Thanks for the reminder not to make any assumptions about how adult ELLs are engaging the AFA system.  Susan W   

Dear Glenda (and all).

Thanks for your response.

I also don't think it' the educator's job to "tow the government line" But letting students know it's the law is certainly within our purview.  It is our job to give our students the linguistic tools (and sociocultural context)  they need to be able to access information that they need so they can make up their own minds.

So, what have some of you been doing in class to give students these  tools? Forms? Role plays? Projects?  It may be a little early days, but it would be interesting to set up a project where students could interview people on the pros and cons of the AFA, finding stories and statistics for both sides, online, in print, and in person..That sounds like a project for higher level students, perhaps, but maybe it could be scaffolded for lower levels.

Thoughts or resources anyone?

Miriam

 

 

 

That's exactly the kind of project I had in mind, Miriam, and I think most teachers can adapt it up or down to be appropriate for the level of the students they teach.

Actually, the survey idea was tried recently as PBL by one of the teachers I was working with as a PD facilitator.  Her lower level ESL students had a lot of questions about AFA.  They identified their driving questions, created their KWHL, and then worked in small groups to research the questions.  (Each group addressed one question.  I only remember two: What are the requirements to apply for AFA insurance?  How do people feel about AFA?)  The survey was really basic, of course, but their findings were that most of the people they knew were positive about AFA. Most of their friends and family did not qualify for it because of their immigration status.  They also had to present this information in a PowerPoint not only to their class but to the other classes at their site.

I think for a class that has more citizens or LPRs, walking through the website with them and doing role plays about the phone process are great ideas also.

Peace, 
Glenda