232468 Caring for Immigrant Populations in Colorado: New Approaches in a Hostile Environment

Tuesday, November 9, 2010 : 3:10 PM - 3:30 PM

Tillman Farley, MD , Salud Family Health Centers, Fort Lupton, CO
  
Over the past several years, anti-immigrant sentiment in Colorado, as in much of the country, has increased markedly. In 2006, this sentiment culminated in a state law preventing any state funds from being used by undocumented immigrants for non-mandated services. Although the true fiscal impact of this law was minimal, it resulted in several unanticipated outcomes, including increased obstacles to care by legal residents, and decreased health access to both documented and undocumented people living in Colorado. To continue our mission of serving those in need, Salud Family Health Centers developed or modified a number of programs which allowed all immigrants living in our catchment area increased access to care, in the face of a law meant to deny health services to certain immigrants. We also worked with medical students at the University of Colorado to study the unintended consequences of this law.

Learning Areas:
Public health or related education
Public health or related laws, regulations, standards, or guidelines

Learning Objectives:
By the end of this session participants will be able to list the consequences, in Colorado, of a law meant to exclude undocumented immigrants from state funded services. By the end of this session, participants will be able to describe a community outreach program aimed at increasing health access to immigrants, regardless of documentation. By the end of this session, participants will be able to describe how various health service programs were modified and developed such that they continue to be available to all people, regardless of documentation status, in a state intent on denying services to people without proper documentation.

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I am the medical services director of a large migrant/community healthcenter serving a primarily immigrant population in Colorado. I have been working with migrant workers since 1993.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.

Back to: 4280.0: Immigrant Health Care & the President's Patient Protection Act