Implementation of Health Insurance Navigation for Racial/Ethnic Minority Men Who Have Sex With Men Presenting for Community-Based HIV Testing.

OBJECTIVE

Being uninsured is a barrier to accessing HIV prevention and treatment. This study assesses the implementation of health insurance navigation.

DESIGN

Randomized structural intervention conducted from 2018 to 2020 in Chicago, IL. Black/African American and Hispanic/Latino men who have sex with men presenting for community-based HIV testing (N = 230) were offered a single session of health insurance navigation immediately after their HIV test, regardless of HIV test result.

METHODS

Using descriptive statistics, we present sociodemographic characteristics, health insurance navigation uptake, and immediate health insurance outcomes resulting from navigation.

RESULTS

Most participants were 18-34 years of age (n = 175, 76.0%), most identified as non-Hispanic Black/African American (n = 202, 87.8%), and most were insured (n = 164, 71.3%). Half (n = 115, 50.0%) accepted navigation. Of those 115, 10 uninsured participants enrolled in health insurance (8.7%) and 21 uninsured participants had incomplete enrollment (18.3%); 80 insured participants reviewed their current plan (69.6%) and 4 insured participants changed to a plan better suited to their HIV care needs (3.5%). Almost all 115 were satisfied with the amount of time they had with the navigator (n = 114, 99.1%) and the services they received (n = 107, 93.0%).

CONCLUSIONS

Providing health insurance navigation at the time of HIV testing was an acceptable and feasible method to engage Black/African American and Hispanic/Latino men who have sex with men in health insurance education and enrollment. Community-based structural interventions are essential to reaching national public health and Ending the HIV Epidemic goals.