There are many changes on the horizon for health care, most prominently the Affordable Care Act coverage expansion in 2014.  This expansion offers many great opportunities.  First and foremost, many people in our communities will be eligible for health insurance coverage.  Now is the time to begin preparing for this monumental change.  It is important that our clinics ensure that as many eligible people as possible are signed up for Medi-Cal and that they retain their Medi-Cal coverage when their annual redetermination comes up.  For those uninsured children and adults in our community who are not eligible for Medi-Cal, it is important that we continue to enroll them into HealthPAC.  In January 2014, we are planning for a smooth transition for those HealthPAC enrollees who will be eligible either for the Medi-Cal expansion or for subsidized coverage in the health insurance exchange.

AHC will continue to work with Alameda County to make sure that there will be financing and support for health care for those people who will remain uninsured in 2014.  I am confident that we will continue to evolve with the times and meet the changes in healthcare head on.