Nonprofits take lead on translation in Illinois

CHICAGO (AP) — Nonprofit groups and community organizations in Illinois aren't waiting for government officials to translate information about the nation's health overhaul into languages other than English.

Chicago nonprofit Health & Disability Advocates, for example, is working with the Asian Health Coalition to translate fact sheets into Chinese, Korean and Vietnamese.

President Barack Obama's sweeping health care overhaul will provide insurance coverage to many uninsured legal immigrants. But nearly 1.2 million Illinois residents don't speak English well.

Illinois officials expect federal grant money eventually will be available to help reach non-English speakers. Meanwhile, the task for translating information has fallen to nonprofits and insurance companies.

Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois plans to have insurance information on the new online marketplace available in English, Spanish, Tagalog, Navajo and traditional Chinese.