Improving Access to Language Services in Health Care A Look at National and State Efforts

More than 23 million Americans have limited English proficiency, which complicates their ability to obtain quality health care. Language barriers in the health care setting can lead to miscommunications and cause medical errors, delay or denial of services, issues with medication management, and underutilization of preventive services. This brief assesses emerging national efforts to address language barriers and profiles work in three states—California, Minnesota, and New York—to highlight challenges, successes, and implications for future policy and activities related to providing language services.