- [Announcer] Funding for this program is made possible by Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield.

Thank you.

(melancholy piano music) - Black people are treated different in a medical setting.

- Folks live in areas where there's no fresh produce close by.

- Health care is hard for Latinos here.

- Disability is expensive.

- When you get down into the trans community, there's not doctors that look like us.

- Clairton's at the worst area in the country.

- All of those minoritized communities, we have to think differently about how we take care of them, even living in the system that we live in.

- All right!

It's done.

- What my daughter means to me, I can't even put into words.

- My mom's my best friend.

(laughs) I'm her caretaker.

I take her to and from appointments, help her with anything that she needs, but also try to let her be as independent as she can.

- I was always at the hospital.

She seen everything.

I was obese and I started getting pain in my back.

My doctor would just tell me like it was because of my size.

So I want to say for two years I was back and forth at the pain clinic, the hospital, the ER, even had back surgery and no one ever found the cancer.

- Research has documented physicians and those who are training in the field of medicine have biases and are exhibiting forms of discrimination in what they think.

Black populations are more likely to endure pain, not exhibit certain behaviors that are "considered healthy" and that can be detrimental.

- You do get looked over.

I'm living proof of that.

They didn't want to believe me.

They thought I just wanted pills.

I really was in pain and I could not walk.

It felt like somebody was ripping my body apart.

- African-Americans still encounter that you are less than.

You don't deserve the dignity respect.

It continues to perpetuate this distrust because it continues to happen.

(piano music) - Today we're here for an initiative that helps to support vaccine distribution.

- Our model is that they see people that look like us giving the vaccines.

- If you're meeting the people where they are, they're more willing to be able to listen to you, trust you.

- Unfortunately, because of the healthcare disparities in the African-American community, it's very important that we offer this service.

- Every clinic we do, our numbers get higher.

- I'm very proud to see the turnout that people are really starting to respond.

- The list of disparities in healthcare is very long.

One of the ones that we see here in our area are death of babies before their first birthday.

(piano music) And so you can't separate death of babies from death of moms.

- Thank you so much for coming out to what I think is going to be our first annual Too Beautiful For Earth event.

This is an event that honors families that have suffered pregnancy and infant loss.

I experienced an stillbirth in 2010.

There've been tons of studies that have found that just being a black woman and becoming pregnant causes such an amount of societal stress and pressure that they become more at risk.

I decided that I wanted to find a way to help these families and I essentially pursued a career as a doula.

- I suffer from a miscarriage.

The balloons for me, they just symbolized releasing the grief.

- The experience of losing my child showed me the system is like a machine.

They just used to produce in babies.

Let's produce the babies and that's not a feeling that you want to have when you're bringing a child - A first time parent.

in the world.

- 10 to 20% of our health is shaped by healthcare alone.

Everything else shapes our health.

- The pandemic was not easy for somebody that's going through chemo.

I gotta drive 40 minutes to get to my doctors.

You know, my oncologist.

- Roughly 30 Million Americans live in medical deserts and so this leads to higher rates of mortality, as well as long-term health problems.

This has been really driven by redlining where banks use the red marker to mark on maps where the most desirable neighborhoods are and where the least desirable neighborhoods are.

That also contributed to food deserts and food swamps that are prevalent today.

- Today we're in the Beaver Falls area of Beaver County.

We're here because we know that there's a high food insecurity rate.

- At our drive-up distribution so far in 2021, we've been able to serve close to 3 million pounds of food out into the communities.

- We have a lot of individuals that are really just out on their own and whether that's scrounging up an income or trying to pay their medical bills, skipping out on meals isn't something families should have to do.

- One thing we always try to focus on is having fresh produce at all of our distributions, because we know that food is medicine.

- [Jordan] The ultimate goal of the food bank is so that southwestern Pennsylvania, there are no food insecure families in the future, which is of course a lofty goal.

- Alongside of having to pay for food, you have to pay for gas also to get there, to get food.

And then like the healthy food is more expensive than you just getting like a bad burger or something.

I mean, it's very expensive.

- We have to sacrifice a lot.

- Food deserts affect communities of color, low income residents and that is a contributing factor to diet related chronic conditions like diabetes and obesity.

(piano music) - We have garlic planted in the back there as well.

We have some collard greens here.

We use the word food apartheid area because it's systematically done in black and brown neighborhoods according to what your zip code is.

So for instance, here in Homewood, we haven't had a grocery store in 1995.

I'm the Founder and Executive Director of the Black Urban Gardeners and Farmers of Pittsburgh.

We all come together and work in concert to bring healthy produce to the community.

- In communities like this, it's mostly fast food foods, foods that lead to early graves if you eat too much of it.

- But if you have access to fresh, locally grown food, your health will improve, not only physically, but mentally as well.

Food trauma is real and in this country, one of the wealthiest countries in the world, there's no way someone should go without eating.

(piano music) - My name is Braeden Bash.

I'm the Physician Assistant at Allies For Health + Wellbeing.

I identify as non-binary.

I use they/them pronouns.

I grew up in a household or a background that was very non-supportive of me as a person, but I think through that path and that journey, I can now provide that to others.

(piano music) One of the biggest barriers that I think we need to focus on more within our community is trying to address social and mental healthcare.

- I identify as lesbian.

I do have a wife.

I dealt with a lot of identity issues within my first couple of years of college.

(piano music) People are dealing with mental health and dealing with stress and anxiety, and simply just trying to be themselves.

Some are more likely, especially the youth, to commit suicide.

(somber music) - I moved to Atlanta and I was working for a company.

They would not address me by my proper pronouns.

I was spit on.

I was told that, you know, my mother should have aborted me.

I was told that it was my fault because I was trans that these situations are happening and there's nothing that they can do about it.

We take a beating mentally every single day, all day long.

Sometimes you don't even want to leave out your house.

- It's hard to find any type of therapist, psychiatrist that identifies within our own community.

- There ain't no black trans therapists here that I can have that conversation without all whatsoever.

(upbeat music) Biggest issue I have with the healthcare system is the initial intake, when they're coming in and being mis-gendered and mistreated.

That can turn somebody away really quick.

- There are specific health risks that we are more prevalent to get like cancer, where it's in a final stage because we aren't getting our preventative healthcare.

Also, we have a higher risk of sexually transmitted infections.

(somber music) - HIV exposure for people of trans experience, it's five times higher than the general population.

Compared to trans women of color, that goes up by 20.

If you look at something as simple as a NAT test that we do for gonorrhea and chlamydia, one swab that we swab in just one area can cost as much as $300.

If it was a perfect world, I could write on a script pad, please access housing and give it to patients.

Please have or acquire food resources, trying to get food.

I could write that on a script pad.

(somber music) - Housing equals healthcare, which equals life.

We just want people to be able to live and thrive, you know, and succeed here.

That's what we're, We are in the drop-in center for Proud Haven.

We provide kind of like an emergency housing situation, clothes here that folks can go through.

We also give out food.

You know you have a place to come to be comfortable and be yourself and be you.

Hopefully the work that we're putting in now will help the next generation.

- Things have gotten significantly better with the passage of the Affordable Care Act.

There are things that are covered through Medicare and Medicaid that are standard for all insurance plans now.

- Any type of mental health services, augmentations for their body if they needed it, whatever hormone replacement, everything that we need to complete us, however that may look for a person, we were able to get through our health insurance partially.

(laughs) - So is healthcare getting better within our community within Pittsburgh?

Yes.

Is there still a lot that we need to work on?

Absolutely.

We need to start with our medical models of how we're trying to train future generations of medical providers.

- And just understanding and wanting to learn and grow.

- If that means that you have to call somebody by their pronoun that identifies with them, then do that because that's going to save their life.

And that's what this is about.

(soft piano music) - Every Latina that comes here is thinking about having a better life and helping their family to grow.

(soft piano music) I visited a emergency room with a friend of mine a couple of months ago, and he just called me telling me that he has started receiving the bills at home and he owes already $12,000.

And mind you, for an immigrant with no status, probably working at the construction area to be able to pay $12,000 is not a game, is not easy.

(jazzy music) My name is David Rosario and I'm the person in charge of the Unica Hair Salon that my wife and I just opened in February.

We are a good Latino team here working together and bringing happiness for everyone.

I was born in the Dominican Republic and then I came to the United States.

In my case, I don't have health insurance because I've been in the process of being a resident.

You have to go through a lot of things and it's tough.

It's tough.

- Latinos are the ethnic group with the least health insurance and that's because of misinformation, fear of not being able to express yourself in English and the lack of money to pay for the insurance.

(somber music) - I was feeling bad with my heart.

It was beating very fast and then I went to the doctor, a hundred dollars first bill.

Then the second one, it was at $1,300.

It makes me feel bad because it's a lot of money, but I want to be able to protect myself and my family and I know we need health insurance.

- When you are undocumented, lots of things become complicated.

You cannot get a bank account for the most part, therefore you don't have checks.

You don't have a credit card.

You cannot use Venmo.

So you basically live in a cash economy.

You cannot have health insurance through the Affordable Care Act.

(soft music) - One of the problems that we have within Latino communities, because of the lack of preventive healthcare, we're seeing issues with obesity, with diabetes.

(somber music) And somehow that's also true for children so we wanna make sure that chronic conditions and preventive care are at front and that way, if we invest in those programs, we're gonna be able to save funds in the long-term.

Every Tuesday morning, we would bring our mobile unit and we offer a free clinic here.

We have a really good partnership with Casa Jose.

Casa San Jose is a welcoming center for the immigrant Latino community.

They provide many services.

They connect families with different organizations.

- I like to say, it's the heart of the community.

(foreign language) It will be in the advantage of everybody financially and health wise to have here.

- We as a country, who's ahead, we have a responsibility to that to look after each other.

After all, you know, while we're Americans, we're all well human beings.

- And I love about the Latino community here, that we help each other.

We are Latinos and Latinos never give up.

(laughs) (soft music) - I didn't love school.

I didn't need a doctorate, but I felt like I had to prove myself.

And so when I go to a doctor's office and they introduce themselves as Dr. Smith, I introduce myself as Dr. Badger.

(soft music) - My name is Lester Bennett.

Currently right now I am a Patient Care Coordinator for Laurel Medical Solutions.

I'm also an advocate for those with disabilities.

I wasn't born with my disability.

I acquired my disability at the age of 19.

(soft music) - My name is Jamie Upshaw.

I am the Founder and Executive Director of Autism Urban Connections Incorporated.

It is the first and only African-American, minority-focused autism organization in the state of Pennsylvania.

(soft music) - We know that disability and poverty are a cycle.

At what points you become disabled, you're more likely to go into poverty.

If you're in poverty, you're more likely to develop a disability and so they go hand in hand.

(soft music) Our very survival is based on insurance.

We need nurses or personal care attendants.

Those are not paid for by private insurance so we are forced to stay on medical assistance or Medicaid.

And so to receive these benefits, we have to stay in poverty.

We actually are not legally married just by the church, because the way Medicaid is set up, it's counted as household income.

And so if a household goes over a certain cap on their income, I would lose insurance.

(soft music) - Because Josie requires 24 hour care, it's been difficult for me to find a full-time job because it's very difficult to find care attendants that are willing to come in for a limited wage, which is set by the state.

(somber music) - I sought out a diagnosis at the age of two, and we didn't get one until he was three years and seven months old.

I was told that my son was suffering terrible twos and treacherous threes, almost like it was a joke.

This is very common in our African-American community, our minority communities, that our kids are diagnosed with ADHD or conduct disorder, opposed to being diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder.

(soft music) I think it attributes to healthcare professionals just not listening.

You have to fight the healthcare system.

You have to fight the school system and it's draining.

- People with disabilities and especially when it comes to minorities, we're seen as less educated.

Our practitioners are making decisions for us without even giving us the opportunity to feel like that we can make those certain decisions.

We want to make sure that we're highlighting the fact that people with disabilities are being segregated and how we are going to stop the segregation and why it's important.

- Right now what we're doing is Mrs.

Wheelchair Pennsylvania 2021.

This is her home in Johnstown, PA. We're gonna see the barriers that she has to go through just to get to our local Walmart.

- Medical accessibility is a huge issue, no sidewalks and no crosswalk in an area where there are a lot of wheelchair users.

- So this is very dangerous.

That is a big pothole.

I'm so excited because the politicians and lawmakers and community leaders are here and hopefully this activity really opened their eyes about what we go through.

Believe it or not, some of the big healthcare facilities around here aren't accessible.

It's 30 years after the ADA.

We should be far past this.

- Everywhere we look, we will see healthcare inequalities, whether we're talking about people with disabilities, people of different races and when we do not have appropriate care or insurance for individuals who are marginalized, then our whole system suffers.

(uplifting music) - I live in Clairton because I can't afford to get out of Clairton bottom line.

(somber music) I moved to Clairton probably when I was about two or three years old.

Well, I sleep with a CPAP.

I have heart arrhythmia.

I've had cancer.

My wife was living in Clairton basically all of her life.

She had Sarcoidosis, which is in the lung.

It changed, went into Neurosarcoidosis, which affects the brain.

She's had a couple of strokes.

Seizures, goes through therapy every day.

I mean it's a shame that we have live like that.

- So how have you been doing?

- Pretty good.

- Good, any problems with nasal allergies, runny nose?

I'm Dr. Deborah Gentile.

I'm a Pediatric Allergy and Asthma doctor.

There's a large percentage of patients in these areas, including Clairton to have what we call uncontrolled asthma.

Across the state, we expect 30% of patients with asthma to be uncontrolled.

In these regions, my work has shown it's 60%.

- My name is Germaine Gooden-Patterson, and I am a community health worker with Women For A Healthy Environment.

In the country, Allegheny County is number two when it comes to exposures to PM2.5.

Particular fine particular matter, this is the matter that gets trapped into your lungs and it just causes different types of ailments.

(somber music) - [Deborah] There's a lot of health inequities here because these tend to be marginalized people.

- The population is over 6,000 with close to 30% being black and brown folks, as well as folks who live in poverty.

(somber music) - Their home value, if they're a homeowner is so low because of their proximity to point sources of pollution that they couldn't get enough money to be able to buy a new home elsewhere.

They're physically isolated from being able to get to centers that can provide them care.

If you have a medical assistance plan, you're often not able to access to private practitioners that are closer to you.

- The school, being so close to US Steel and the fact that children's health is being affected.

It's inhumane.

- I've done some recent work that shows 22.4% of school children in this region have asthma and people forget we still have about 3,500 deaths each year in the U.S. due to asthma.

You can die from asthma.

- Well, I worked for 36 years for U.S. Steel.

Let's put it this way, I don't know too many people, I could probably count them on two hands that I associated with in the mill that are still living.

- Women For A Healthy Environment is a nonprofit organization.

What we do is educate and advocate in terms of environmental exposures in the home.

My targeted areas are Duquesne, McKeesport, as well as Clairton.

I would like folks in power to really ask themselves a question.

You know, would I want my family to live here?

- I spend one day, every two weeks here at Cornerstone Care, a federally qualified health clinic.

Their newest location is here in Clairton and they selected dislocation because many of the patients are poor.

If you don't have access, you're not gonna seek care.

Chronic diseases need routine follow up because they can wax and wane.

So the whole purpose of this is to have more of a holistic approach where we're taking care of all of their problems so that we can focus on their health.

- I think people need to open their window and start raising a little bit of hell.

I mean, it's ridiculous to have to put up with what the people here are putting up with.

That's about all I have to say.

(somber music) - Here in Pittsburgh, we have heard these stories over and over, year after year, we need to change the story.

- Other people are suffering because we aren't providing equitable supports to all of the marginalized groups.

- I don't understand exactly why this country is like this.

We will be economically better off if everybody had health care.

- We're spending more money on healthcare and burning about a third or a fourth of it for administrative costs whenever we could be engaging more people in saving lives.

- We invest in things such as warfare and military prisons.

So if we're willing to invest in those things, we should be willing to invest in the things that we know are supportive of health and wellbeing.

(soft music)