Refugees are men, women and children who have fled their home countries due to persecutionor the well-founded fear of persecutionon the basis of their race, religion, ethnicity, political opinion or social group.
In order to access health care, address their physical and mental health care needs and, ultimately, begin integrating into their new communities, refugees need help navigating this complex health system. In addition, with the coming implementation of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), refugees will need to learn to navigate the new insurance exchanges, through culturally and linguistically appropriate services and materials developed and provided by Immigrant and Refugee Integration Services (IRIS).
This grant will support IRIS in promoting health insurance enrollment and navigation support systems that empower refugees to achieve medical self-sufficiency even in the midst of major health insurance reforms.