How Insurers Can Advance Health Equity Under the Affordable Care Act

The ACA includes many requirements that advance health equity in the commercial coverage market and has contributed to significant progress in narrowing racial and ethnic health disparities. While health insurers alone cannot close disparities, insurance stakeholders play a key role and have committed to doing more to address systemic racism. A new blog post by the Commonwealth Fund highlights several ACA requirements that have not been fully utilized by insurers—resulting in gaps that exacerbate disparities. Strategies include addressing provider contracting and network and benefit designs, as well as fully complying with nondiscrimination standards. Insurers and regulators can do more to turn commitment into action.