Culturally and Linguistically Appropriate

Services (CLAS)

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What are CLAS (Culturally and Linguistically Appropriate Services) Standards?
The National CLAS Standards were issued in 2000 by the Federal Office of Minority Health to advance health equity, improve quality, and help eliminate health-care disparities by establishing a blueprint for health and health care organizations to implement culturally and linguistically appropriate services.  It provides a framework for continuous quality improvement for work towards eliminating disparities.  The CLAS Standards were enhanced in 2013 to included 15 Standards, grouped into four “themes”:

• Principal Standards (Standard #1)
• Governance, Leadership, and Workforces (Standards #2-4
• Communication and languages Assistances (Standards #5-8)
• Engagement, Continuous Improvement, and Accountability (Standards #9-15)

Following is a complete list of the CLAS Standards.

For more information on CLAS refer to the Think Cultural Health website
https://www.thinkculturalhealth.hhs.gov/Content/clas.asp