Welcome to the third episode of #WeTheImmigrants!
We The Immigrants is a video series where immigrants share their experiences with health care in the US. We’ve gathered videos from immigrants across New York to discuss their stories about affordability, accessibility, and more. Watch Navjot’s story below!
Navjot shares her story as an immigrant in need of better health care.
Meet Navjot, a blogger and immigrant community organizer. As an immigrant, she’s faced her share of obstacles to receive the care that she needs. The limited coverage she receives can produce unexpected bills as well as charges. And for her, doctors are often farther away, costing her more time and money to go to an appointment. As she notes, “Some doctors, you have to wait five, six hours, which is like the length of an entire American workday just to be seen.”
She also adds that a language barrier often prevents immigrants from receiving proper care. Especially with Covid, there is now an added risk: “How do you tell a doctor that you can’t breath right, or you feel weird? There’s no way of telling your doctor exactly how you’re feeling if you can’t communicate with them.”
Finally, Navjot expresses that single payer healthcare can provide the comprehensive coverage our immigrants need. In her words, “We can’t public option our way to health care anymore, it’s not how the human body works.”
Watch her full story here: