The Devastating Cost of Cancer in Latinos



This year, over 2 million American will get a cancer diagnosis, including many Latinos. As one of the leading causes of death in Latinos in the U.S., one in five men and one in seven women who are Latino will die from the disease. Cancer also takes a heavy financial toll on patients, whose survival is dependent upon a variety of factors, including access to quality, often costly, healthcare treatments. Let’s explore the cost burden of cancer, and what to do about it. The Cost Burden of Cancer In 2018, patients and their families paid $5.6 billion out of pocket for cancer treatments, such as surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy drugs, according to the American Cancer Society (ACS). Americans spent a total of $183 billion on cancer-related healthcare in 2015 - an amount ...

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Medicare: What Latinos Should Know



Medicare can be a complex topic for anyone.   Getting health insurance coverage through Medicare has many moving parts, from knowing where to start, to searching through plans, to choosing the right plan for you.   Let's dive into Medicare and a few helpful tips to consider when choosing your plan.   What is Medicare?   Medicare is the federal health insurance program for people who are 65 or older, regardless of income, medical history, or health status.   The program also covers certain younger people with disabilities and people with End-Stage Renal Disease (ESRD; permanent kidney failure requiring dialysis or a transplant).   “Medicare plays a key role in providing health and financial security to 60 million older people and younger people with ...

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Rafael Lopez: ACA is Working for Latinos



Editor’s Note: This blog post was originally published here and written by Rafael López, Commissioner, Administration on Children, Youth, and Families (ACF), and is republished with the courtesy of HHS ACF. For many people, January is a time to make resolutions and set goals for a healthier New Year. January 2016 is an especially important month. Open enrollment for the Health Insurance Marketplace ends on January 31, 2016. Since open enrollment began on November 1, over 8.6 million people have signed up for affordable health care coverage just this year and it is estimated that about 17.6 million uninsured people have gained health insurance since the passage of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Of them, over 4 million Latinos (ages 18-64) gained health insurance, and the uninsured ...

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#SaludTues Tweetchat 9/15/15: Connecting Latino Kids to Health Coverage


latino kid at doctor

Over the last several years, millions of U.S. kids have been connected with free or low-cost health coverage through Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP). But more than 3 million kids remain eligible but uninsured, including many Latino kids. Join us for a #SaludTues Tweetchat on Sept. 15, 2015, to tweet about what we can do to close the gap and make sure that all kids—and more parents, too—get the health insurance they need and deserve: WHAT: #SaludTues Tweetchat: “Connecting Latino Kids to Health Coverage” DATE: 1-2 p.m. ET (Noon-1 p.m. CT), Tuesday, Sept. 15, 2015 WHERE: On Twitter with hashtag #SaludTues HOST: @SaludToday CO-HOSTS: The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ Connecting Kids to Coverage Campaign (@IKNGov) and ...

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California: Committed to Provide Healthcare to Undocumented Latino Immigrants



In California 1.5 million Latino immigrants live without health insurance, but that soon could change for hundreds of illegal families due to a strong movement in the state government and counties, Univision News reports In June, the state legislature passed two bills that expands access to public health services to undocumented immigrants that will be in effect next year. Most recently the governor of California, Jerry Brown signed a budget that grants access to health care to children without a legal status in the country. “Children are relatively healthy, and it will not cost a lot of money to take care of their health compared to other population groups,” Steven Wallace, professor at the UCLA Fielding school of public health, told Univision News. The County Medical ...

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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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Getting More Latinos Covered with Health Insurance



SaludToday Guest Blogger: Annette Raveneau National Latino Press Secretary, Enroll America Obamacare’s open enrollment ends Feb. 15. But what does that mean exactly? I did not know what any lingo related to the health insurance industry meant even when I had health insurance through my previous jobs. Well, open enrollment is the window of opportunity you have to choose a health plan or switch from the one you have to another one. With the Health Insurance Marketplace – which is the market that the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) established so everybody that is uninsured or underinsured can shop for quality, affordable health insurance – the open enrollment period for this year is from Nov. 15, 2014 until Feb. 15, 2015. So, this window is closing in less than a ...

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Report: Poverty, Income Inequality Remain High in Texas



Texas is "worse" than most states in poverty, health insurance coverage, and income equality, according to a new report. The report, from the Center for American Progress Action Fund, tracked 15 poverty indicators, for which Texas ranked in the bottom half of the country for 11 indicators. For example, 17.5% of Texans had incomes below the poverty line ($23,834 annually for a family of four) in 2013, ranking the state 38th in the nation. Texas also ranked: 50th in the nation for health care coverage among low-income people. 49th in the nation for hunger and food insecurity (meaning that they experienced difficulty providing enough food due to a lack of money or resources during some point of the year). 42nd in the nation for higher education attainment rate. 43rd in the ...

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