Opinion: Leticia Van de Putte on Latino Health
09/23/2013 02:57PM | 8418 views
Did you know that 38 percent of Latinos in Texas are uninsured, compared to only 13.5 percent of non-Hispanic whites? And of the 6.1 million uninsured Texans, more than half (3.3 million) are Hispanic?
The results of that can be seen in Latino health outcomes. We are much less likely to receive preventive care such as screenings for cancer, blood pressure, cholesterol, heart disease, sexually transmitted diseases, and diabetes. We are almost twice as likely to have diabetes than non-Hispanic whites.
Also, Hispanics experience new HIV infections at 2.5 times the rate of whites, and Latina women contract cervical cancer at twice the rate of non-Hispanic whites.
On September 5, I was privileged to be on a panel in San Antonio hosted by The Texas Tribune titled, “The Future of Latino Health Care,” along with Dr. Esteban López, a regional president for Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas, Dr. Amelie Ramirez, director of the Institute for Health Promotion Research at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio.
It was an enlightening and engaging discussion, as we tried to look at both myths and facts about Latinos and health.
For example, we discussed how our cultura affects our health care — such as how it won’t do much good to talk about good health strategies with Señor Rodriguez if Señora Rodriguez is not also in the room, since she’s probably the one who runs the household and can implement those strategies.
We also talked about what our cultura does not do. Too often Latino cultural factors get blamed for high rates of obesity among us, when of course the real villain is poverty.
DSC04879While everyone needs health care, clearly Latinos are a community that is medically underserved.And our state government isn’t helping — when the state cut its Women’s Health Program, or it has rules that only grant Medicaid benefits for 60 days after birth, that deprives our low-income folks of the preventive care that might keep them out of the emergency room.
The ongoing implementation of the Affordable Care Act (ACA, or “Obamacare”) will help, although not as much as it could. The new Health Care Exchanges set up by the federal government will help 24 million people currently uninsured to find coverage they can afford. If you’re one of those people, the website BeCoveredTexas.org can help you get signed up. (Sign-up begins October 1 for coverage that will begin January 1.)
Unfortunately, our state leaders, mostly in the Republican Party, have fought the ACA tooth and nail and rejected an expansion of Medicaid in Texas that could bring even more people into the fold. If those leaders would change their minds, the number of uninsured Texans would be cut in half.
Which leads me to another way you can improve Texas health care: VOTE. As much as Latinos are overrepresented in bad health statistics, they are just as underrepresented at the ballot box. For next year’s elections, get registered and then cast your vote only for candidates that will make the right decisions for Texas families and our health, making it easier to get everyone insured.
To watch the “Future of Latino Health” panel, go to http://nowcastsa.com/blogs/webcast-future-latino-health-care
State Senator Leticia Van de Putte represents District 26 in Bexar County. She has been a practicing pharmacist for more than three decades.
Click the arrow below to watch NOWCastSA's Interview with Letica Van de Putte, recorded at the Future of Latino Health Care event at UTSA.
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