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Dec 31 2023

Sign On Letter – Section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act

 Dear Secretary Becerra, 

On behalf of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, its Health Care Task Force that works to promote and protect the civil rights and health of all persons in the United States, and the 260 undersigned organizations, we write to urge you to quickly release the HHS Office for Civil Rights (OCR) final rule implementing Section 1557 (Sec. 1557) of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). 

Given the pervasive legacy of discrimination in health systems and health policy, Sec. 1557 has represented a significant step toward rectifying centuries of policies and practices that have created worse health outcomes for communities of color, people with disabilities, women, LGBTQ+ people, Limited English Proficient (LEP) individuals, older adults and children, and other systemically marginalized groups. We are grateful that the Biden-Harris administration has demonstrated strong leadership in the development of a new rule, and many of our organizations provided robust comments on the proposed rule. However, the end of the public comment process has long since passed. It is of paramount importance to our communities that a final rule be put in place as quickly as possible. We strongly urge the administration to move expeditiously to finalize and publish the rule. 

The inclusion of Sec. 1557 in the ACA was a critical step to ensure the promises of the law would redound to the benefit of everyone in the United States regardless of race, ethnicity, national origin (including language), age, sex (including sex stereotypes; sex characteristics, including intersex traits; pregnancy or related conditions, including termination of pregnancy; sexual orientation; transgender status; and gender identity), and disability. For years, many of our organizations have worked, in partnership with HHS, the White House, and others, to promote timely and strong regulations that would implement this new landmark anti-discrimination law and ensure the promises of Sec. 1557 would become reality. We are grateful to the Obama-Biden administration for finalizing long-awaited regulations implementing Sec. 1557 in 2016. Unfortunately, in 2020, the Trump administration finalized new regulations drastically rewriting the Obama-era regulations and purporting to severely limit Sec. 1557’s application. 

As you know, the Trump administration’s attacks on civil rights in general and Sec.1557 in particular have diminished Sec. 1557’s intended impact and protections. While the statute remains in place, the implementing regulations are critical to providing covered entities with the details of what they must do to comply. As a prime example of the Trump administration’s rollback, covered entities currently do not have to provide notice of Sec. 1557’s application or designate employees to ensure the entity’s compliance and response to complaints. Many individuals who should benefit from Sec. 1557’s protections do not even know their rights have been violated or the redress they may have. This underscores the importance of the quick release of the Biden-Harris administration’s proposed rule to address these and many other important issues. 

We urge you to release the final rule as quickly as possible. Its release not only will highlight the administration’s commitment to health equity and nondiscrimination but also help ensure the entire regulatory process is completed expeditiously. As you know, HHS has previously experienced several challenges to the agency’s important work on civil rights. We feel strongly that the Sec. 1557 regulation must be finalized as soon as possible so that this administration can lead the response to any legal challenge to the rule, and to avoid any timeline that would leave the regulation subject to the Congressional Review Act. While we hope that none of these scenarios take place, a quick release would avoid any situation that would jeopardize a rule so important to the health of our communities. 

Again, we commend the administration for its comprehensive efforts toward ensuring equity for all. We look forward to actively engaging in the education, outreach, implementation, and enforcement that can occur once the Sec. 1557 rule is finalized. Thank you for your consideration of our views. For more information, please contact Leadership Conference Health Care Task Force co-chair Mara Youdelman, National Health Law Program ([email protected]), or Leadership Conference Policy Counsel Peggy Ramin ([email protected]). 

Sincerely,

The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights 

National Health Law Program, Health Care Task Force Co-Chair 

National Partnership for Women & Families, Health Care Task Force Co-Chair 

ACA Consumer Advocacy 

ACCESS 

Access Ready, Inc. 

ACCESS REPRODUCTIVE JUSTICE 

Actionable Intelligence for Social Policy (AISP) 

Advocates for Youth 

AFL-CIO 

AIDS Foundation Chicago 

AIDS United 

Alabama Disabilities Advocacy Program 

Allies for Independence

AltaMed Health Services 

American Association of People with Disabilities 

American Association on Health and Disability 

American Atheists 

American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network 

American College of Nurse-Midwives 

American Council of the Blind 

American Federation of Teachers 

American Friends Service Committee (AFSC) 

American Humanist Association 

APLA Health 

APNH: A Place to Nourish your Health 

Arizona Center for Law in the Public Interest 

Arkansas Black Gay Men’s Forum 

Asian & Pacific Islander American Health Forum (APIAHF) 

Asian Pacific Institute on Gender-Based Violence 

Asian Resources, Inc. 

Assistive Technology Law Center 

Association of Asian Pacific Community Health Organizations (AAPCHO) 

Association of Maternal & Child Health Programs 

Association of Nurses in AIDS Care 

Autism Society of America 

Autistic People of Color Fund 

Autistic Self Advocacy Network 

Autistic Women & Nonbinary Network 

Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law 

Bend the Arc: Jewish Action 

Birth In Color 

Black Phoenix Organizing Collective 

California Immigrant Policy Center 

California Pan-Ethnic Health Network 

Capitol Ballroom Council, inc. 

Caring Across Generations 

Center for Asian Americans in Action 

Center for Black Equity 

Center for Civil Justice 

Center for Elder Law & Justice 

Center for Health Progress 

Center for Law and Social Policy 

Center for Medicare Advocacy 

Center for Reproductive Rights 

Center for the Study of Social Policy 

CenterLink: The Community of LGBTQ Centers 

Centro Savila 

Charlotte Center for Legal Advocacy 

Children’s Defense Fund 

Chinese-American Planning Council (CPC) 

Clearinghouse on Women’s Issues 

Clinica Monsenor Oscar A. Romero 

Coalition on Human Needs 

Colorado Center on Law and Policy 

Colorado Consumer Health Initiative 

CommunicationFIRST 

Community Catalyst 

Community Legal Aid Society, Inc. (Delaware) 

Disability Law Center 

Disability Law Center of Utah 

Disability Policy Consortium 

Disability Rights Arkansas 

Disability Rights California 

Disability Rights Connecticut 

Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund (DREDF) 

Disability Rights Florida 

Disability Rights Michigan 

Disability Rights New Jersey 

Disability Rights North Carolina 

Disability Rights Oregon 

Disability Rights Tennessee 

Disability Rights Texas 

Disability Rights Washington 

Doctors for America 

Drug Policy Alliance 

East Bay Sanctuary Covenant 

Eating Disorders Coalition for Research, Policy, & Action 

El Vínculo Hispano 

Empowering Pacific Islander Communities 

Equality California 

Families USA 

Family Voices 

Farmworker Justice 

Fast-Track Cities Institute 

Feminist Majority Foundation 

FFRF Action Fund 

First Focus on Children 

Florida Legal Services 

FORGE, Inc. 

Futures Without Violence 

Georgetown University Center for Children and Families 

Georgians for a Healthy Future 

Give for a Smile 

GLMA: Health Professionals Advancing LGBTQ+ Equality 

GO2 for Lung Cancer 

GRACE/End Child Poverty California 

Guttmacher Institute 

Hadassah, The Women’s Zionist Organization of America 

Haitian Neighborhood Center, Sant La Inc. 

Health & Medicine Policy Research Group 

Health Law Advocates 

Hispanic Federation 

HIV Medicine Association 

HIV+Hepatitis Policy Institute 

Houston Immigration Legal Services Collaborative 

Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights 

Impact Fund 

Indiana Disability Rights 

Indiana Justice Project 

interACT: Advocates for Intersex Youth 

Interfaith Alliance 

International Association of Providers of AIDS Care 

International Community Health Services 

Ipas 

Japanese American Citizens League (JACL) 

Jewish Family Service of Los Angeles 

Jewish Women International 

Justice in Aging 

Kentucky Black Pride Inc. 

Kentucky Equal Justice Center 

Kentucky Health Justice Network 

Labor Council for Latin American Advancement 

Lakeshore Foundation 

Lanai Community Health Center 

Latino Community Fund (LCF Georgia) 

Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law 

Lawyers for Good Government 

Legal Action Center 

Legal Aid Justice Center 

Legal Council for Health Justice 

Lurie Institute for Disability Policy, Brandeis University 

Maine Equal Justice 

Maine Immigrants Rights Coalition 

Massachusetts Law Reform Institute 

Medicare Rights Center 

Metro New York Health Care for All 

Michigan Immigrant Rights Center 

Midwife360 

Minnesota People of Color Pride Organization 

Mississippi Center for Justice 

Missouri Asian American Youth Foundation 

Mixteco/Indigena Community Organizing Project (MICOP) 

Mom Congress 

Movement Advancement Project 

NASTAD 

National Asian American Pacific Islander Mental Health Association (NAAPIMHA) 

National Asian Pacific American Women’s Forum 

National Association of Certified Professional Midwives 

National Association of Councils on Developmental Disabilities 

National Association of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners 

National Association of Social Workers 

National Black Justice Coalition 

National Center for Lesbian Rights 

National Center for Parent Leadership, Advocacy, and Community Empowerment (National PLACE) 

National Center for Transgender Equality 

National Center on Domestic Violence, Trauma, and Mental Health 

National Coalition for Latinxs with Disabilities (CNLD) 

National Community Action Partnership 

National Council of Asian Pacific Americans 

National Council of Jewish Women 

National Council on Aging 

National Disability Institute 

National Disability Rights Network (NDRN) 

National Employment Law Project 

National Family Planning & Reproductive Health Association 

National Health Care For the Homeless Council 

National Hispanic Medical Association 

National Immigration Law Center 

National Institute for Reproductive Health 

National Latina Institute for Reproductive Justice 

National League for Nursing 

National LGBT Cancer Network 

National LGBTQ Task Force Action Fund 

National Network for Arab American Communities (NNAAC) 

National Network to End Domestic Violence 

National Organization for Women 

National Women’s Health Network 

National Women’s Law Center 

Native American Disability Law Center 

Nebraska Appleseed 

NETWORK Lobby for Catholic Social Justice 

Network of Women with Disabilities 

New Jersey Alliance for Immigrant Justice 

New York Legal Assistance Group (NYLAG) 

NM Center on Law and Poverty 

North Dakota Protection and Advocacy Project 

Northwest Health Law Advocates 

NYC Center for Black Pride, Inc. 

OCA – Asian Pacific American Advocates 

Pacific Asian Counseling Services 

Papa Ola Lokahi 

Pennsylvania Health Law Project 

People Power United 

PFLAG National 

Physicians for Reproductive Health 

Pisgah Legal Services 

PIVOT-The Progressive Vietnamese American Organization 

Planned Parenthood Federation of America 

Plume Health 

Power to Decide 

Prevention Institute 

Pride & Promote of Los Angeles 

Pride South Side 

Protect Our Care 

Public Advocacy for Kids (PAK) 

Public Justice Center 

Reproductive Freedom For All (formerly NARAL Pro-Choice America) 

Reproductive Health Impact: The Collaborative for Equity & Justice 

RootsAction.org 

Safe States Alliance 

Service Employees International Union (SEIU) 

SIECUS: Sex Ed for Social Change 

Silver State Equality 

Sojourners-SojoAction 

South Asian Public Health Association 

South Carolina Appleseed Legal Justice Center 

Southeast Asia Resource Action Center (SEARAC) 

State innovation Exchange (SIX) 

Sycamores 

T1International, USA 

Tennessee Justice Center 

The AIDS Institute 

The Arc of the United States 

The Century Foundation’s Health Equity and Reform team 

The Children’s Agenda 

The Children’s Partnership 

The Coelho Center for Disability Law, Policy and Innovation 

The Kansas Affiliate of the American College of Nurse-Midwives 

The Legal Aid Society (New York City) 

The Praxis Project 

The Secular Coalition for America 

The Trevor Project 

The University of Baltimore’s Center on Applied Feminism 

The Workers Circle 

THRIVE SS, Inc 

Trans Formations Project 

Transgender Legal Defense & Education Fund 

Transhealth 

U.S. Gender and Disability Justice Alliance 

UnidosUS 

Union for Reform Judaism 

United States of Care 

Virginia Affiliate of the American College of Nurse-Midwives 

We Testify 

Whitman-Walker Institute 

William E. Morris Institute for Justice 

WV Black Pride 

Yellowhammer Fund 

Young Center for Immigrant Children’s Rights 

YWCA USA 

download pdf

 

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