Access to interpreting services for deaf/hard-of-hearing Medicaid managed care members

L.A. Care Health Plan is the largest public health plan in the nation, serving nearly one million Los Angeles County residents. Despite the availability of free professional interpreting services, recent data indicates a third (32%) of limited-English proficient members use friends or family to interpret. More than double this number (69%) of L.A. Care's Seniors and Persons with Disabilities (SPD) report using friends or family to interpret. In response to the transitioning of SPD beneficiaries in California from fee-for-service Medi-Cal to Medi-Cal Managed Care, L.A. Care developed an innovative video designed to inform deaf and hard-of-hearing members about their right to free professional American Sign Language (ASL) interpreting services. The video was developed in collaboration with the Greater Los Angeles Agency on Deafness (GLAD), a community based organization dedicated to serving the deaf and hard-of-hearing community. The video, hosted by a deaf T.V. personality, covers the importance of using an ASL interpreter, rights and responsibilities, and how to obtain interpreter services. Beginning in March 2011, the videos were mailed to members identified as deaf or hard-of-hearing and distributed in-person by GLAD to members seeking services. To date, over 100 videos have been distributed. Utilization of ASL interpreting services has greatly increased. Prior to the development and distribution of the ASL video, there were 29 ASL interpreting service requests in all of 2010. By the end of 2011, nine months after the intervention, there were 88 requests, an increase of over 200%.