Civil Rights Act

Office for Civil Rights (OCR)

What LawsDoes OCR Enforce?

“No person shall on the ground of race, color or national origin, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance.”

What LawsDoes OCR Enforce?

Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973

first comprehensive civil rights law for people with disabilities in the areas of:employment public accommodationsTelecommunicationsfederally-funded programsgovernment agencies

What LawsDoes OCR Enforce?

The Age Discrimination Act :Applies to all agesExceptions that permit the use of agedistinctions in programs and activities

Jurisdiction and Authority

OCR jurisdiction:• State agencies • Hospitals • Welfare programs• Nursing homes • Substance abuse treatment centers• Day care centers • Medicaid HMOs, etc• Child service agencies • Outpatient rehabilitation clinics• Public health clinics• Rural health agencies• Adult day activity programs • Home health agencies and hospices• Area agencies on aging

Jurisdiction and Authority

HHS Protects beneficiaries from

discrimination in Services. LEP

Financial Jurisdiction

Must be a recipient of federal financial assistance. Examples:

* Medicare Part A* Medicaid* TANF Block grants* Hill-Burton* Research grants from the National Institutes of

Health* Title IV-E (children services)* Ryan White Care Act funds

Title VI of the Civil Rights Act

No person in the United Statesshall on the ground of race, coloror national origin, be excludedfrom participation in, be denied thebenefits of, or be subjected todiscrimination under any programor activity receiving Federalfinancial assistance.

– Section 601 of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 196442 U S C Section 2000d et seq

Who Is A Limited EnglishProficient (LEP) Person?

An LEP individual is a person

who does not speak English

as their primary language and

who has a limited ability to

read, write, speak or

understand English.

The Supreme Court Decision

Title VI prohibits conduct that has a

disproportionate effect on LEP

persons because such conduct

constitutes national-origin

discrimination.

- Lau v Nichols, 1974

Types of IllegalDiscrimination

1. Intentional

2. Disparate Impact

Examples of IllegalDiscrimination

Denying a benefit or opportunity to Participate

Providing different services/benefits Providing services/benefits in a

different manner or in a segregated environment

Restricting privileges Discriminatory policies/procedures

LEP and Title VI

To comply with Title VI federally-funded entities must take reasonable steps to ensure meaningful access to their programs, activities and services for LEP persons..

Department of Health & HumanServices

Office for Civil Rights Offers:Policy Guidance to Discrimination

Affecting “Limited English Proficient Persons” (LEP)

HHS LEP Guidance

Guidance develop plans improve access

- www.hhs.gov/ocr

What Must Recipients Do?

take reasonable steps to ensure meaningful access to their programs, activities and services

Using the Four-Factor Analysisto Determine the Recipient’sObligation

1. Number or Proportion

2. Frequency of Contact

3. Nature and Importance

4. Costs and Resources

Factor 1: Number or Pro portion of LEP Persons …

How many LEP persons? Potential data sources:

encounter dataData from Census, school systems,

state and local governmentcommunity organizations

Also consider:minors of LEP parents/guardiansunderserved population

Factor 2: Frequency With Which LEP individuals come into contact with program, activity or service

How often is a particular language encountered?

Factor 3: Nature and Importance of the Program, Activity, or Service

Importance of activity, information, service, or program

Possible consequences of not communicating

Denial causes life-threatening implications

Factor 4: Costs and Resources Available to the Recipient

reasonable costs of language assistance services

resources

Ways to Provide Cost-Effective Language Services

Information sharing. Training bilingual staff. Telephone & video conference services. Pooling resources, standardizing

documents. qualified translators/interpreters to avoid

errors / unnecessary costs. Centralizing services. qualified volunteers.

Selecting LanguageAssistance Services

Options for Oral Language Services:Bilingual StaffStaff InterpretersContractorsTelephone Lines & Video

TeleconferencingCommunity Volunteers

Family Members or Friends as Interpreters

recipients should: Announce Interpreter at no cost Not required to provide own interpreter Do not rely on family members or friends Evaluate whether, interpreter should be

provided

Use of Family Members or Friends: Special Concerns

Providers respect LEP Persons’ desire to:interpreter of their own choosing

instead of free language assistance subject to:

• Issues of competence, appropriateness, conflicts of interests, and confidentiality

• caution when a LEP person asks a minor child to serve as an interpreter

Written Translations

Vital written materials should be translated.

Vital Written Materials Could Include, for instance…

Consent and complaint forms Intake forms Written notices of actions affecting parental

custody or child support Advisement of free language assistance Written competency tests for license/job/skills

where English is not required Applications to participate in a

program/activity

Non-vital Documents Could Include, for instance…

Hospital menus Public service documents For a non-governmental recipient,

government documents and forms Large Documents General Information about the

program for informational purposes only

Written Translations: Into What Languages Should Documents be Translated?

Distinctions between frequently-encountered and less commonly-encountered languages

Written Translations “Safe Harbor”

Strong evidence of compliance If the recipient does not meet the

circumstances in the safe harbor, it does not mean there is non-compliance

“Safe Harbors”

(A) All vital documents are translated for each LEP group of 5% or 1000 of the eligible population

OR(B) If there are fewer than 50 persons in a

language group that reaches the 5% in (A), a recipient can instead provide written notice in the primary language of the right to receive oral interpretation of those written materials, free of cost

Websites

Website Information www.hhs.gov/ocr/ www.lep.gov

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