# The SPEAK Act: Making Healthcare Technology Work for Non-English Speakers

Right now, millions of Americans who don't speak English as their first language are having trouble using telehealth services and online patient portals. The SPEAK Act addresses this problem by creating a task force that will figure out what's getting in the way and come up with solutions.

The bill recognizes that telehealth—video visits with doctors, online medical records, and other digital health tools—has become really important for getting healthcare. But people with limited English proficiency use these services much less than native English speakers do. The government wants to understand why and fix it. The task force will bring together doctors, hospitals, insurance companies, language service providers, technology companies, and patient advocates to study the barriers and develop recommendations. They'll look at things like how to better integrate interpreters into video appointments, how to make instructions for using these platforms clearer for non-English speakers, and how to improve access to online patient portals.

Once the task force completes its work, the Department of Health and Human Services will create and maintain a public website sharing best practices with healthcare providers and technology companies. This means doctors' offices and hospitals will have guidance on how to better serve their non-English-speaking patients through digital tools. The task force will submit an interim report to Congress within a year and then a final report within two years, with annual updates after that. Essentially, this bill is about making sure language barriers don't prevent people from accessing modern healthcare technology—something that could save patients money on travel costs and time off work while improving their overall healthcare experience.

SPEAK Act of 2024

Steel, Michelle

Supporting Patient Education And Knowledge Act of 2023 or the SPEAK Act of 2023This bill establishes the Improved Access to Health Care Information Technology for non-English Speakers Task Force.The task force must assess any current barriers that limit the ability of non-English speakers to access telehealth services and recommend improvements (e.g., technological enhancements). The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) must collect information from relevant stakeholders to inform the task force's assessments and recommendations.&nbsp;HHS must establish a website with best practices for connecting non-English speakers with telehealth services, based on the task force's final report.