Obamacare enrollment by Latinos hurt by immigration law concerns

By Alex Dobuzinskis and Curtis Skinner LOS ANGELES/NEW YORK (Reuters) – Concerns among Hispanics that signing up for medical insurance under President Barack Obama's healthcare law may draw the scrutiny of immigration authorities has hurt enrollment, according to advocates of the policy. Convincing Latinos to enroll could be crucial to the law's success, and supporters of Obama's signature domestic policy are aiming their campaign at the 10.2 million Latinos eligible for the new insurance plans or the expansion of the Medicaid program for the poor. As a group, Latinos are younger than the overall population in the United States and signing them up in large numbers under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act could help offset the costs of covering older and sicker people. But the enrollment effort appears to be falling short.