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A new report by the National Council of La Raza (NCLR), the largest national Hispanic civil rights and advocacy organization in the U.S., has found that there is a severe health information gap among Latinos in Georgia which is adversely affecting their health status and which could affect Georgia’s public health. The report, Latino Health, Georgia’s Future: Strategies for Improving the Health of Latinos in the State, was released today at a news conference at the State Legislature in Atlanta.
“The health of Georgia’s fastest-growing community is being compromised by a lack of basic information about a host of health issues including disease, public safety, and health care options. The good news is that this gap can be closed by public and private partnerships to fund more research, provide more culturally relevant information, and increase the number of health personnel experienced in working with the Latino community,” stated Janet Murguí, NCLR President and CEO.
The report is the culmination of a two-year process which included literature reviews, interviews with key health officials in the state, and a series of community focus groups. Among the report’s findings:
- Latinos are a critical component of Georgia’s future growth and development. In the last 15 years, Georgia’s Latino population grew more than 300%; as of 2004, Georgia had the third-fastest-growing Latino population of any state. Further, the Latino population is, on average, younger than other groups in the state; more than half (59.8%) of Georgia’s Latinos are less than 29 years old. Almost four in five (78.1%) Latinos are in the labor force, compared to 66% for the total population, and account for more than 30% of workers in private household services and 20% of workers in construction, agriculture, nondurable manufacturing, and eating, drinking, and lodging services.
- Latinos lack access to health care. Forty-one percent of Georgia’s Latinos do not have health insurance, the highest percentage of any group in the state, compared to just 15% of Whites and 20% of African Americans. Significantly, only 4% of Latino workers have employer-sponsored health insurance. Their employers may not offer it as a benefit or, if it is offered, Latinos often choose not to participate due to lack of bilingual information about these plans, leading to misconceptions that they cannot afford the weekly or monthly premiums. Also, among the report’s focus group participants, approximately half said that they do not regularly receive an annual physical exam, and most had not seen a doctor in at least three years.
- Latinos experience barriers to vital information on a host of health concerns. A dearth of Spanish-language materials has prevented Hispanics from fully engaging in Georgia’s health care system. In a recent survey, more than eight out of ten Latino parents said they did not know where to find health education materials in Spanish. Moreover, Latinos have a higher rate of workplace injuries due to language barriers and a lack of bilingual safety information at the worksite.
- There is a lack of Latino health personnel in the state. Only 2.3% of nonfederal physicians in Georgia are Latino, and just eight Latinos graduated from a Georgia medical school in 2002. A 2002 report predicted that the Latino pediatrician-to-child ratio will fall to nine doctors per 100,000 children in 2025, a significant drop from 17 per 100,000 in 1996. In addition, a severe shortage of interpreters has led some clinics in the state to refuse service to non-English-speakers.
The report also makes a series of recommendations for the state’s health agencies, nonprofit institutions, policy-makers, and the Latino community itself to ensure access to health care for Georgia’s growing Latino community:
- State health agencies should fund a major study on Latino health.
- Recipients of federal funds should be held accountable in ensuring that Latinos have access to interpreters as they navigate the health care system.
- Foundations should provide funding for innovative research and prevention projects targeting the Latino community.
- Nonprofits should develop a promotores de salud training program to provide the community with health care resources.
- Policy-makers should work to eliminate political barriers to health care services.
- Latino community-based organizations should engage more directly in advocacy efforts related to health.
“The Latino community’s health challenges are putting Georgia’s public health and safety at risk. At the end of the day, we need to know more about, and do more for, this growing community which is contributing every day to the state’s well-being and has such a key role in ensuring Georgia’s future,” concluded Murguí.
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