For AANHPI communities, the barriers to end-of-life care run deeper than geography

Compassion & Choices was proud to partner with the Asian Pacific American Institute for Congressional Studies (APAICS) by attending the Legislative Leadership Summit, the Annual Awards Gala, and participating in the Health Summit session, “From Guam to Flushing: Mapping Health Disparities Across Our Communities.” 

At the 2026 Asian Pacific American Institute for Congressional Studies Health Summit, Compassion & Choices Senior Legislative Counsel Jaspreet Chowdhary, JD, MPH, joined a panel of advocates, researchers, and healthcare leaders to examine how geography, infrastructure, and limited access to culturally appropriate care create health disparities across AANHPI communities. Jaspreet brought a specific and often overlooked lens to that conversation: what those disparities look like at the end of life, and what it takes to make end-of-life care more accessible  for communities whose values, languages, and decision-making structures are rarely reflected in the systems meant to serve them.

Jaspreet outlined the barriers that make equitable end-of-life care so hard to access: a shortage of culturally and linguistically appropriate materials, immigration concerns, and a lack of data that makes the experiences of AANHPI and Pacific Islander communities invisible. She also pointed to a deeper problem — most healthcare systems are built around individual decision making, while many AANHPI communities make decisions as a family. “This mismatch creates tension and sometimes silence,” she said, “and results in folks not accessing or not engaging with end-of-life tools and options.”

Jaspreet also spoke to what’s working and what gives her hope. Community-based participatory research is gaining momentum, giving community members a direct role in shaping the solutions that affect them. And when it comes to education, who delivers the message matters as much as the message itself. “When education comes from culturally aligned messengers, engagement increases significantly.” She also pointed to the importance of not waiting for perfect conditions. “If you’re waiting for conditions to be perfect to act, then that unintentionally increases disparity and inequity. It’s important to engage where things are and with what you have.”

She closed with a reminder that normalizing these conversations is itself a form of advocacy. “End-of-life care and discussions are sometimes very tricky and hard and uncomfortable, especially in different cultural contexts. But it’s important to take small openings and begin with a small step in starting to normalize those discussions, ’cause what is talked about around family tables eventually and hopefully becomes what’s discussed around lawmaking tables or around tables at organizations or companies that are making decisions about where to put resources and what those resources should look like.” 

Compassion & Choices has invested in this work through its AANHPI Leadership Council and community efforts. Because end-of-life care should be accessible to all communities and each individual should be able to have an end-of-life experience aligned with their values and beliefs. . 

Watch the full panel here. 

Learn more about our work with AANHPI communities — and find resources for you and your family — on our AANHPI page.