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The Affordable Care Act of 2010 is expected to increase the number of insured in the United States by at least 32 million in 2019, about half of them non-white. This will demand of marketers across the spectrum a heightened focus on multicultural patients as consumers. Is the advertising industry ready for this?

Serving diverse populations has never been a strong suit of the health-care system in general; there are huge disparities in the quality of care between whites and African Americans and Hispanics. The law calls for expanded initiatives to increase racial and ethnic diversity in the health-care profession, as well as improved cultural competency. But this will take time. Meanwhile, the existing force of health-care providers will have to adopt a more multicultural mindset — and that includes increased multicultural intelligence in marketing communications.

Insurance companies will face a different set of challenges. The law stipulates that by 2014 states must set up exchanges through which consumers can directly purchase health insurance, and all legal residents will be required to obtain insurance or pay a penalty. That will likely force a change in the traditional model of marketing health insurance from B2B to a more consumer-oriented approach.

Continue reading at AdAge.com