New York Times Examines Neighborhood Health Clinic for Latinos in Washington, DC

The New York Times examines La Clinica del Pueblo, a not-for-profit health clinic that serves all patients regardless of immigration status or capacity to pay. La Clinica began with a volunteer doctor in 1983 and was open only one night per week. Now the clinic has a $4 million operating budget -- made up of public and private funds -- and has a full-time staff of 46 people and 100 volunteers. All staff members and volunteers speak more than one language. Facilities like La Clinica "are filling in the gaps in the health care system that sometimes leave Hispanics feeling shut out," the Times reports. An estimated 30% to 37% of Latinos living in the United States are uninsured, the largest percentage of all ethnic groups, the Times reports. Many of them are unable to obtain public health insurance because of 1996 welfare reforms, which restrict new immigrants from receiving Medicaid or CHIP program benefits. Even immigrants who do qualify for such health programs are reluctant to enroll because they incorrectly presume it will "hurt their residency" status, the Times reports. Government and mainstream health care organizations are becoming "more appreciative" of community clinics such as La Clinica because they provide primary care for diseases "increasing rapidly among Latinos," such as heart disease, diabetes, hepatitis and HIV, the Times reports. Health officials recognize that not providing U.S. residents with access to primary care "will result in greater long-term costs to the system" (Clemetson, New York Times, 10/7).