Survey Data Analysis ObamaCare Seminars Japanese American Social Services, Inc. (JASSI) 100 Gold Street, Lower Level, New York, NY 10038 Phone: 347-482-1541; Email: info@jassi.org Website: http://jassi.org

Seminar “ObamaCare” ¡ At the seminars, the main provisions of the Affordable

Care Act, the Health Insurance Marketplace (NY State of Health), and a role of Navigators were explained in both English and Japanese.

¡  Seminars were held 5 times; November 9, 13, & 14, 2013, December 7, 2013, and February 22, 2014.

¡ A total of 380+ people participated in these seminars, mainly Japanese-speaking individuals.

¡  181 filled survey forms were collected from these participants.

Ratio of Male to Female Seminar Participation Rate

MALE 24%

FEMALE 72%

Unkonwn 4%

Ages of Participants

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Ages

20s

30s

40s

50s

60-64

65+

Unknown

Immigration Status of Participants

LPR 65%

US 8%

Unknown 0%

O 12%

H 5% I

5%

E 1%

F 0%

J 1%

L 1%

R 1%

VISA HOLDERS

27%

LPR US Unknown O H I E F G4 J L R

Participants’ Residential Areas

QUEENS 38%

MANHATTAN 33%

BROOKLYN 17%

NJ 6%

NYS 5%

BRONX 1%

STATEN ISLAND

0%

Percentage of Participants without Health Coverage

COVERED 39% NOT

COVERED 60%

Unknown 1%

Ages of Participants without Health Coverage

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

Ages

20s

30s

40s

50s

60-64

65+

Main Reasons for Not Having Health Coverage (103 answers)

¡  Health Insurance is too expensive (80)

¡  I have foreign commercial health Insurance from Japan (9)

¡  I have Japan’s National Health Insurance (5). So, I receive annual exam and medical care when I visit Japan.

¡  My employer does not offer health care coverage (3)

¡  I have limited coverage options (Hospital, Surgery, & Cancer Treatment) (2)

¡  I have a pre-existing medical condition and was unable to get health care coverage (1)

¡  I use HHC Options (1)

¡  I do not know how to enroll in health coverage or how to choose a health insurance company (1)

¡  I hate hospitals (1)

Opinions about ObamaCare Negative (37 answers)

¡  Still too expensive to buy health insurance. It is not “affordable.”

¡  Too complicated

¡  Having health insurance is an individual responsibility to his or her own health, and penalties should not be charged by the government.

¡  If the government manages, they should have created a public health insurance system like Japan.

¡  Japanese medical providers in NYC do not accept ObamaCare plans. They are useless to me.

¡  Too many changes in ObamaCare. It is confusing.

¡  No information for non-immigrants

¡  Need affordable plans for seniors who are not eligible for premium free Medicare

¡  Still hard to create an account on the Marketplace.

¡  Security issues (hesitant to input personal information)

Positive (6 answers)

¡  It is great that the health plans will cover mental health and people with pre-existing medical conditions.

¡  It seems better than the previous health care system.

¡  America will finally be able to join the developed countries!

¡  It is generally a good policy.

Access to Health Care ¡ Do you believe that you will increase access to health care by

having health coverage under ObamaCare?

YES NO NOT SURE Unknown 0% 5%

10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35% 40% 45%

Covered Not Covered

Concerns about Health Insurance (74 answers)

¡  Language Access (Need Japanese Navigators and up-to-date websites about ObamaCare written in Japanese)

¡  Too complicated compared to Japan’s Health Care System

¡  It is hard to understand about in-Network and out-of-network system (Why can I just choose doctors and hospitals/clinics freely?)

¡  Costs (Health Insurance and medical costs are too expensive)

¡  It is hard to estimate the medical costs until you actually get sick.

¡  Dental Care

¡  Choice of Health Plans

¡  Foreign Commercial Health Insurance (Is it qualified as Minimum Essential Coverage? )

¡  Health care coverage for disabilities (Is there health care coverage specifically for people with disabilities?)

¡  Medicare vs. ObamaCare (I spend so much money to purchase Medicare. Which plan is better for me?)

¡  Limited options to choose coverage for small business employees.

Increase in Confidence in the Topics Learned ¡ Were you able to clarify and deepen your

understanding about ObamaCare and the Health Insurance Marketplace?

0 50 100 150 200

Unknown

NO

YES

Topics that Participants Are Further Interested in. ¡  How to find the best plan

¡  Differences between Insurance Companies including qualities

¡  Medical Costs

¡  Medicaid

¡  Health Insurance for Disabilities

¡  Medicare and Medicaid for Seniors

¡  How to use HealthCare.Gov

¡  SHOP

¡  Seminars for Businesses

¡  Penalties for Businesses

Access to Information in their Native Language

¡ Did you increase access to important information regarding ObamaCare in your native language?

Unknown

NO

YES

0 50 100 150 200

Language Access

0 50 100 150 200

Unknown

NO

YES

If we were to have another seminar about ObamaCare in the future,

would you want it to be explained in Japanese?

Opinions about Seminars ¡  It was very informative!

¡  It was very helpful to be explained in Japanese in such complicated topics.

¡  It was very useful!

¡  Thank you so much for having this seminar! It was informative and highly helpful!

Summary ¡  72% of participants were female.

¡  60% of participants did not have health coverage. The main reason of not having health insurance is because it is expensive.

¡  Immigration status of participants are LPR, O-visa holders, U.S. citizens, and H, I, E, F, G4, J, L, & R-visa holders accordingly.

¡  Although most participants are not sure if ObamaCare will help them use healthcare providers more often, those who are not covered are more likely to believe that they will increase access to health care by having health coverage under ObamaCare than those who are already covered.

¡  Approximately 41% of participants still have concerns about Health Insurance.

¡  Approximately 92% of participants felt increased in confidence in topics they learned.

¡  Approximately 94% of participants felt increased access to resources in their native language.

¡  Approximately 80% of participants need language assistance for ObamaCare.