ACA Section 1557: Bilingual Providers and Staff Providing Interpreter and/or Translation Services
Date: 03/16/17
Under Section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act, Covered Entities (health plans, health care clearinghouses, and health care providers) must provide free, accurate, and timely language assistance services and protect the privacy and independence of individuals with limited English proficiency (LEP).
This means that California Health & Wellness providers must offer a qualified interpreter, when reasonable, for communication with Limited English Proficient individuals and use a qualified translator for written content. In addition, providers can only rely on qualified bilingual/multilingual staff to communicate directly with individuals with LEP. Bilingual providers and staff are considered qualified when providing language assistance as part of their current, assigned job responsibilities, and:
- Have a demonstrated proficiency in speaking, understanding and communicating in English and at least one other language, including any necessary specialized vocabulary, terminology and phraseology; and
- Are able to effectively, accurately, and impartially communicate directly with individuals with limited English proficiency in their primary languages.
If bilingual providers and staff are used to interpret and/or provide translation of written materials, they must complete training and adhere to interpreting ethics, conduct and confidentiality. Providers must retain documentation demonstrating compliance with these requirements and furnish this information upon request to California Health & Wellness for auditing purposes.
Please review this document, “Bilingual Providers and Staff Providing Interpreter and/or Translation Services,” for more information.
As a reminder… California Health & Wellness members can call the Member Services Department at 1-877-658-0305 (for TTY, contact California Relay by dialing 711 and provide the 1-877-658-0305 number) to request any of the following services at no cost:
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