Aetna Introduces New Chinese-Language Website

HARTFORD, Conn. — This open enrollment season a new Chinese-language website from Aetna (NYSE: AET) is making it easier for many Chinese consumers to learn about Aetna’s broad range of products, services and network of physicians, hospitals and other health care professionals. Aetna.com in Chinese also provides general information and tips about health benefits to help members whose primary language is Chinese choose benefits plans that best serve them and their families.

“Of the approximately 3.6 million Chinese in the United States, 63 percent are foreign born, and more than 77 percent of Chinese-American households speak Chinese at home according to the U.S. Census Bureau,” says Rachel Xu Vorobyev, head of Aetna’s Local Market Improvement and Targeted Growth Markets. “Aetna’s Chinese-language website gives Chinese-speaking consumers the option of accessing health care information that they can trust and in the language with which they are most comfortable - whether that’s Chinese, English or both. We want to help our members make informed decisions and keep themselves and their families physically and financially healthy.”

The new site includes information on health care basics, health and wellness, products and plans, health tools, and Aetna’s community involvement and diversity initiatives. A glossary of common medical, dental and health insurance terms helps members understand plan materials and descriptions. The site also has information on Asian- and Chinese-focused disease management programs and suggested questions consumers can ask their health care providers to help build relationships and make health care visits more productive and positive. More information and forms will become available on the site over time.

Through the site members who are proficient in English can also access the English-version of Aetna Navigator®, Aetna’s award-winning, password-protected member website, where they can compare evidence-based hospital outcomes or look up claim and other member-specific information. They can also download claims forms and can use the DocFind® online directory to find participating hospitals and doctors, including those who speak Chinese.

“Language and cultural barriers exist, and the lack of Chinese-language health care information can decrease access to and quality of care in Chinese-dominated communities,” says John Wang, president of the Asian American Business Development Center. “Aetna is helping to remove these barriers for many Chinese families with Aetna.com in Chinese, which can help them more effectively navigate the health care system, including identifying Chinese-speaking providers who may better understand Western as well as Eastern approaches to health care.”

The new Chinese-language website adds to Aetna’s increasing outreach and service to the Chinese community. Medical and dental plan summaries and other materials are currently available in Chinese, and Aetna is recruiting multilingual employees as well as participating providers. Aetna has also launched new culturally based products and supports the Chinese community, organizations and businesses through volunteer and financial investments.