Times are financially tough for many families, especially low-income Latinos. To save money, many people are cutting costs on non-essentials, like eating out, entertainment, and more. But some people are cutting costs on items that are normally considered essential, like prescription medications, according to a recent US Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) report. Let’s explore what adults are most likely to skip taking medications to save money, the consequences of this behavior, and how leaders are working to reduce the cost of prescription drugs.
Groups Most Affected by Drug Costs
Unfortunately, groups most likely to skip medication to save money are those who are already vulnerable to health disparities, according to the CDC report. These groups ...
June 16, 2023 was a big win for low-income Texas families. Gov. Greg Abbot signed House Bill 12, which extends Medicaid health coverage for Texas mothers from just 60 days after giving birth to a full year. This new bill, which is expected to take effect by the end of 2023, has massive potential to improve newborn and maternal health outcomes for Latinas and all mothers statewide. Here are several big-as-Texas reasons to celebrate the signing of House Bill 12!
Improved Access to Prenatal and Postpartum Care
Half of women having babies in Texas get their healthcare coverage through Medicaid, according to data gathered by March of Dimes. Many of these women are low-income Latinas who may not be able to afford another healthcare coverage option. Going without health ...
In the next few years, Latinos face a 142% rise in cancer rates. Latinos also experience cancer differently—from genetics to healthcare access to survivorship. That’s why Dr. Amelie Ramirez, director of Salud America! and the Institute for Health Promotion Research at UT Health San Antonio, partnered with the Mays Cancer Center to create the Advancing the Science of Cancer in Latinos (ASCL) biennial conference. Read the proceedings from the 2018 and 2020 ASCL Conferences. The 2022 ASCL Conference on Feb. 23-25, 2022, in San Antonio, Texas, welcomed over 250 prominent researchers, physicians, healthcare professionals, patient advocates, and students from across the globe to address cancer health disparities among Latinos. Conference sponsors included major supporters Genentech ...
We have updated our Salud America! Health Equity Report Card to cover your county’s child opportunity score, environmental justice score, location affordability, and transit access. The Health Equity Report Card, first launched in 2017, auto-generates Latino-focused and local data with interactive maps and comparative gauges, which can help you visualize and explore local inequities in housing, transit, poverty, health care, food, education, and more. You will see how your county stacks up in these health equity issues — now including child opportunity, location affordability, and transit access — compared to your state and the nation. Then you can share the Report Card with your local leaders to shift from individualist thinking to advocating for systemic community change ...
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) through the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) recently released its proposed rule to expand health care for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipients. The goal is to reduce barriers for DACA recipients through Affordable Care Act Marketplaces, Medicaid, and the Children’s Health Insurance Program. “DACA recipients, like all Dreamers, are Americans, plain and simple. The United States is their home, and they should enjoy the same access to health care as their fellow Americans,” said HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra in a press release. You can comment now on this proposed rule change. We at Salud America! have created the following model comment you can use to speak up on the ...
65% of Americans 21 years of age and older say they are not up to date with one or more routine cancer screenings, according to a survey from the Prevent Cancer Foundation. With this in mind, the Prevent Cancer Foundation has launched the Early Detection = Better Outcomes bilingual campaign to educate and encourage Americans to schedule routine cancer screening appointments. “When people learn the benefits of early detection, they are much more likely to talk to their doctors and get screened to check their health,” said Jody Hoyos, CEO of the Prevent Cancer Foundation, in a press release. “Routine screenings should be part of your wellness routine, just like eating healthy, exercising and taking care of your mental health.” Let us dive into what this campaign ...
For this year’s Healthy Vision Month, the National Eye Institute (NEI) is highlighting the theme of “Healthy Vision: A Family Focus” (“Visión saludable: ojos sanos para su familia”). To ensure that everyone gets important eye health information, the NEI is sharing its helpful resources in Spanish – made through transcreation. Transcreation is the process of taking a concept in one language and completely recreating it in another language, adjusting the literal translation to align with the cultural context of the intended audience. “A successfully transcreated message (either written or visual) evokes the same emotions and carries the same implications in the target language as it does in the source language, but in a way that resonates with the target ...
Despite the ever-growing population of Latinos in the United States, only a very small percentage participate in clinical trials. Clinical trials are studies with volunteers that help researchers learn how to slow, manage, and treat different diseases. “This massive underrepresentation of Latinos in clinical trials makes it hard for researchers to develop new treatments for this group, which suffers a heavy burden of cancer, Alzheimer’s, and other diseases,” said Dr. Amelie Ramirez, director of the Salud America! program at UT Health San Antonio. Do you know what happens in a clinical trial? How can clinical trial help you and your friends, family, and community? Why is Latino participation in clinical trials important? Get answers and helpful resources in new bilingual ...
Latinos are uninsured more than two times the rate of their white peers. Given that Latinos are projected to grow to 29% of the population by 2050, this lack of healthcare coverage, including Medicaid, will continue to endanger the health of many more individuals, families, and the healthcare system. In honor of Minority Health Month, we’re raising awareness of the Latino healthcare crisis, its impact on Latino communities, and how you can help Latinos gain health insurance coverage.
How Many Latinos Lack Health Insurance?
Despite the benefits of health insurance, people of color, low-income families, and other vulnerable groups unfortunately lack health insurance coverage in the US. Latinos are especially uninsured. A 2022 Census Bureau report found that Latinos had the ...
