In April, The California Initiative for Health Equity and Action (Cal-IHEA), in co-sponsorship with the California Immigrant Policy Center (CIPC), held a virtual screening of the short documentary COVER/AGE, followed by an expert panel on “Expanding Medi-Cal to Undocumented Older Californians.” COVER/AGE follows the story of advocates organizing to make health care access a right for all in California, regardless of their immigration status through the Health4All campaign. Our expert panel spoke on themes in the film, including policies needed to address the health needs of undocumented elders in California, an issue made even more urgent in light of the current COVID-19 pandemic. 

Panelists

Sen. María Elena Durazo, California State Senate

Asm. Joaquin Arambula, California State Assembly

Cecilia Ayón, PhD, MSW, Associate Professor of Public Policy at UC Riverside

Héctor Plascencia, Policy Advocate & Film Protagonist

Efrain Talamantes M.D., Director of the AltaMed Institute for Health Equity

Orville Thomas, Director of Government Affairs at CIPC (moderator)

About the Film

For years, advocates have been organizing to make health care access a right for all in California, regardless of their immigration status. Set against the backdrop of California’s Health4All campaign, COVER/AGE is a new short documentary by the California Immigrant Policy Center that follows two leaders who have been championing the immigrant health justice movement in the Golden State. One is an elderly caregiver who has spent over a decade taking care of senior citizens, in spite of being ineligible for the same services she provides. The other is a long-time community advocate who has been organizing directly-impacted people towards policy change at the intersection of immigrant, health, and gender justice. As the conversation around universal coverage continues to gain momentum at the national level, this film highlights the urgency of expanding healthcare coverage to undocumented people by centering the unwavering voices of immigrant health justice leaders.

— This event was sponsored by The California Initiative for Health Equity and Action (Cal-IHEA) and the California Immigrant Policy Center—