Brown Signs Plan to Protect Patients from Deceptive Marketing

SACRAMENTO – On Oct. 2, Gov. Jerry Brown signed a bill into law that offers greater against getting deceived, especially now that up to 6 million Californians are newly eligible for health coverage under the federal Affordable Care Act.

For example, under current law, PPO health insurance plans could send marketing materials in a different language, such as Spanish, that mischaracterize the law. Under Lieu’s new law, however, insurance providers would be required to translate and provide key documents in all languages they market in.

Senate Bill 353 is critical for the 40 percent of Californians who do not speak English. It ensures Limited English Proficient and immigrant communities have the information they need to enroll in health care that best meets their needs by requiring health plans that advertise in non-English languages to provide certain written documents in those languages.