Survey: Health Care Access Improves for Latinos, but Not Among Certain Segments



The number of Latinos with health care coverage has risen dramatically thanks to the Affordable Care Act, but certain groups have lower coverage rates or know little about the health insurance marketplace, according to a new poll. The poll, sponsored by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Center for Health Policy at the University of New Mexico and implemented by Latino Decisions, examined Latinos’ attitudes on immigration policy, the Affordable Care Act, discrimination, and personal connections to immigrants. Only 17% percent of Latinos now lack health insurance, down from 28% in 2013. But a significant gap in health coverage exists when it comes to nativity, with 87 percent of U.S.-born Latinos saying they are covered but only 78 percent of foreign-born Latinos have ...

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#SaludTues Tweetchat 2/10/15: Why Latinos Should #GetCovered Today



U.S. Latinos are a vibrant, dynamic population. But they also struggle with high rates of obesity, certain cancers and other diseases—and they are the least-likely U.S. racial/ethnic group to have access to health care and preventive measures. With open enrollment set to close in just days for health care coverage through the Affordable Care Act (#ACA), let’s use #SaludTues on Feb. 10, 2015, to chat on Twitter about strategies and resources on how to increase Latinos health coverage and access to care: WHAT: #SaludTues Tweetchat: “Why Should Latinos #GetCovered Today?” DATE: Tuesday, Feb. 10, 2015 TIME: 1-2 p.m. ET (Noon-1 p.m. CT) WHERE: On Twitter with hashtag #SaludTues HOST: @SaludToday CO-HOSTS: The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (@RWJF_Live), Elianne ...

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Report: Latinos in the Deep South Struggle with Health Care, Stigmatization, Immigration Challenges



Latinos in the Southern U.S. contribute to their communities, but struggle with accessing healthcare, stigmatization and immigration challenges, according to a new report. The report, The State of Latinos in the Deep South: Being Visible by Piercing the Stigma Veil from the Latinos in the Deep South program of the Latino Commission on AIDS, documents how Latinos in this region are firmly rooted, local contributors who have been adversely impacted by HIV/AIDS, chronic diseases, and national and local policies. The report was led by Dr. Miriam Vega of the Latino Commission on AIDS. Vega, who also is a former grantee of Salud America!, a Latino childhod obesity research network led by the Institute for Health Promotion Research (IHPR) at the UT Health Science Center at San Antonio, ...

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Vote for Best New Video on Sugary Drinks & Marketing; Enter to Win a Prize!



We are unveiling six new videos of #SaludHeroes who reduced surgary drinks and improved healthy marketing for Latino kids. Watch the videos, vote for your favorite, and be entered into a drawing for a free T-shirt and jump rope! The videos are: A no-soda resolution in Texas. Water on every desk in California. Schools swap out sugary drinks in Virginia. Grocery stores tag healthy food in California. Fresh marketing for a corner store in California. L.A. corner store gets a marketing makeover. Vote for your favorite by Dec. 10, 2014. The video with the most votes gets a featured space on the new #SaludHeroes YouTube channel. See contest rules and more information here. The contest is directed by Salud America!, a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation program to ...

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Tweetchat Today (9/16): How to Create a ‘Culture of Health’ for Latinos



Editor's Note: #SaludTues is a weekly Tweetchat hosted at 1 p.m. every Tuesday on Twitter by @SaludToday, the Latino health social media campaign of the Institute for Health Promotion Research (IHPR) at The UT Health Science Center at San Antonio, the team behind SaludToday and Salud America!. Latino health is vital. But Latino families face barriers to good health—lack of access to care, parks, healthy food, as well as more junk food marketing and sugary drinks—which contribute to high obesity rates. Today let’s tweet about the issues that impact our health and well-being during Hispanic Heritage Month (Sept. 15-Oct. 15) and what we can to create a culture of health for Latino families at the inaugural #SaludTues Tweetchat. WHAT: #SaludTues Tweetchat: “How to Create ...

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What the Heck is #SaludTues?



Please join #SaludTues, a new weekly Tweetchat series about Latino health (salud)! The series, which takes place every Tuesday at 1 p.m. ET (12 P.M. CST) every Tuesday, will feature any Latino health issue can be a topic for the #SaludTues chat, from heart health, childhood obesity, nutrition and physical activity, access to health care, education, culture of health, etc. Chats are hosted by @SaludToday, the Latino health social media campaign directed by the team at the Institute for Health Promotion Research (IHPR) at The UT Health Science Center at San Antonio, and two co-host experts or organizations. When is #SaludTues Tweetchat No. 1? On Tuesday, Sept. 16, let's tweet about what we can to create a culture of health for Latino families at the inaugural #SaludTues chat and ...

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Latino Kids Need Salud Heroes. Can You Step Up?



Latino kids need Salud Heroes to help fight childhood obesity. Can you step up? Visit our new website, Salud America! Growing Healthy Change, to read stories about real-life Salud Heroes who are making healthy community changes—from improved marketing to increased access to healthy food and physical activity, etc.—for Latino kids in your neighborhood and across the nation. You can also upload your own Salud Hero stories and photos. Watch a video about the site and Salud Heroes...and be a Salud Hero today! The Growing Healthy Change website was created by Salud America!, a national program of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation based at the Institute for Health Promotion Research (IHPR) at the UT Health Science Center at San Antonio, the team behind SaludToday. The ...

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Study: Latino, Black Physicians Needed to Eliminate Disparities



Blacks and Hispanics make up more than 25% of the U.S. population, but only 15% of doctors. More than 54% of African American, Hispanic and Asian patients select or depend on physicians of color for their care, making it critical for physicians from these backgrounds to provide medical care in the nation’s most racially and culturally diverse communities, according to a new study by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF). The study also notes: 70% of non-English-speaking patients received care from African American, Hispanic or Asian physicians. Asian, Hispanic and Black patients were also found to be 19 to 26 times more likely to be cared for by physicians of their same race. Low-income patients were one-and-a-half to two times more likely to be cared for by Black, ...

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Research: Latino Kids Have High Exposure to Unhealthy Snacks at School



Latino students are widely exposed to high-fat, high-sugar snacks and drinks sold in schools, but implementing stronger nutritional standards can yield healthier school snacks for this growing population at high risk of obesity, according to a new package of research materials released today by Salud America! The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) Research Network to Prevent Obesity Among Latino Children. The new Salud America! “Healthier School Snacks & Latino Kids” research materials, which can be found at www.salud-america.org, include: • A research review with the latest science; • An issue brief (lay summary of the review); • An infographic; and • An animated video This is the first of six new research material packages to be released over the summer by ...

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