Act quickly: Hispanic population majority has major needs

"600 words by Esther J. Cepeda"

The headlines are blaring it: Minorities will overwhelm whites to become the majority by 2042.

Thousands of newspaper articles, TV reports, and radio stories repeated these numbers: the Hispanic population will triple to 133 million, going from 16 percent of the population in 2010 to over 30 percent in 2050.

For the last three days I've been hearing the blaring from acquaintances – on Spanish-language radio, on the bus, all over – bravado, "ha-ha"-ing, and swagger, about "how will whites like being a minority?" Not constructive.

Feeling low from two years of being cast in the role of America's biggest pain in the butt because of the contentious immigration debate, some Latinos felt a particular glee in hearing that there will soon be power in numbers. The only problem is: there are some serious weaknesses in these numbers.

I didn't see many headlines screaming the chilling numbers the Pew Hispanic Center and Robert Wood Johnson Foundation released that same day; they basically outline a future health disaster waiting to happen.

The report found that more than one-fourth of Hispanic adults in the U.S. lack a steady health care provider, and about the same number got no health care information from a qualified professional medical source in the past year.

The most popular source for health information? More than eight in ten reported getting their medical advice from television and radio, which amount to this: white, black or brown – we're all screwed.

Just take the following estimate from the July 2007 Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine: the total cost of lost work and lost productivity due to lost work days was estimated at $63 billion per year (in 2003 dollars). With the burgeoning Latino population – and their medical habits – mixed in, what's that number going to look like in 2050?

And make no mistake, it's not just the living-on-the-edge, recently arrived low-wage-earning immigrants. Pew's report found that a significant share of Hispanics with no usual place to go for medical care are high school graduates (50%), born in the United States (30%) and have health insurance (45%).

The report's authors said, "Indeed, the primary reason that respondents give for lacking a regular health care provider is not related to the cost of health care or assimilation. Rather, when asked why they lack a usual provider, a plurality (41%) of respondents say the principal reason is that they are seldom sick."

Sure! Happy, happy, feel good… no problem, right? May be today, but by 2050, the Hispanic share of the elderly population will almost triple to 17 percent from 6 percent in 2005. Take into account Hispanics' present-day high prevalence of obesity, Type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure and asthma – not only in adults but in kids, as well – then sprinkle in the fact that most of the population growth will be in U.S. births (and U.S.-born Hispanics tend to be less healthy than Hispanic immigrants) and you have a recipe for disaster.

So forget culture, language and financial barriers, and forget that today's Latino's are overwhelmingly young, it's in the general public's best interest to launch a massive health information campaign aimed at teaching Latinos that health care is just, if not moreso, as vitally important when you feel well than when you don't.

And maybe after the "gotcha" moment gets savored, attention will be turned to the most important matter at hand: building the infrastructure of acculturation, social services, and educational and political opportunities we need to make the most of the power in numbers we could have come 2050.

Esther J. Cepeda writes the "600 Words" & "Pregunta del Dia" columns, and is also the Chief Marketing and Communications Officer for the Illinois Student Assistance Commission. Her views and reporting do not necessarily reflect those of ISAC. "600 words" is a registered trademark of EeJayCee, Inc., Copyright 2008. May be reprinted with permission, contact eejaycee@600words.com

Comments

[Isabella Coldivar]

This is a great article. It really brings a lot on the points to the table.

The best temporary fix I've seen lately are the health and wellness fairs aimed towards Hispanics. It brings a lot of information forward and goes to show what an issue this really is.

But that's just a *temporary* fix. Something more permanent needs to kick in. For example, right now, one influential Hispanic is doing her part to spread awareness and let the community know what options they have.

Talk show host, Cristina Saralegui has paired up with AARP to to help spread the word about their great benefits!
Check out http://www.upclosewithcristina.com/video to learn more and make a customizable video! You can have fun with your friends and
make them on online TV star with Cristina's video, "Amigos Live!" It's a blast!

Also, you can enter to win an all inclusive trip for 2 to Miami to to see the Cristina Saralegui show!
Definitely check out AARP for yourself or for a relative or client. They've got some great benefits, including (but not limited to): Exclusive travel discounts, prescription discounts, retirement planning and free companion membership!

I hope it's alright that I commented on your blog -- wanted to let them know about the fun video with Cristina and AARP's great benefits. If you have any further questions,
please don't hesitate to email me.

Thanks!
Isabella Coldivar
AARP Ambassador
isabellaAARP@gmail.com

[Jack spatafora]

Esther,

Info like this is why the Sun Times needed you. And still does. Viva la future....!

jack

[Eva Yusa]

The Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance (DBSA), a national, non-profit organization dedicated to helping those living with these illnesses, has launched a Spanish language version of their Web site. DBSA understands that translating words are not enough, so they are conducting a national survey to learn more about the mental health needs/concerns/perspectives in the Latino community. Help us provide a better mental health resource for Latinos by taking the survey and passing it on to friends and family. Insight from the community is invaluable to us. Thank you!
www.dbsalliance.org/SpanishSurvey (in English)
www.dbsalliance.org/Encuesta (in Spanish)

[Carlton Blanchard]

I'm still working out the final calculations on this... but my first rough estimates seem to show that if each white family in America consumes two hispanic adults per year, say as part of a fourth of July or Memorial Day picnic, and then a newborn hispanic child at Cinco de Mayo, they should be able to maintain the present ratio. Swap out that Thanksgiving turkey for another and they should actually begin seeing a decline in the population.

This post is brought to you by the "Carlton Blanchard Rule of Thumb Public Policy Institute, a Bi-Partisan Think Tank Completely Ripped Off From Esther J. Cepeda"