WHAT ARE YOU SEEING AND HEARING FROM LATINO COMMUNITIES, IN PARTICULAR, ABOUT THE IMPACT OF COVID?

>> I THINK THIS WAS A VERY TRAUMATIC EXPERIENCE FOR ALL OF US.

EARLY ON, IT IS A FEAR OF COVID- 19 THAT WAS PRESENT THROUGHOUT OUR COMMUNITIES.

THE IMPACT WAS DISPROPORTIONATE, AND MANY IN THE LATINO COMMUNITIES WERE ESSENTIAL WORKERS.

THEREFORE, HAD TO WORK EVEN DURING LOCKDOWNS, VERY TENSE FOR SURE.

>> IT HAS BEEN A TREMENDOUS IMPACT.

WE HAVE LOST -- WE HAVE HAD 212,658 CASES ALONE, LATINO, 30% OF ALL OF THEM.

WE HAVE HAD 2639 DEATHü█, WHICH IS 30% OF THE POPULATION.

THESE HAVE BEEN HORRIBLE TIMES FOR THE COMMUNITY, ESPECIALLY FOR ESSENTIAL WORKERS, LESS ACCESS TO HEALTHCARE, THE WAY WE LIVE, WHICH IS NORMALLY THE PROTECTED FACTOR, THAT EXPOSES US, MULTIGENERATIONAL HOUSEHOLDS, AND OVERREPRESENTATION OF CHRONIC DISEASE.

>> DEFINITELY HIGH NUMBERS.

OBVIOUSLY, WE DON'T LIKE TO HEAR THAT, BUT THOSE ARE THE FACTS.

THERE IS A COALITION THAT FORMED IN RESPONSE TO THE PANDEMIC.

WHAT ARE SOME OF THE MOST PRESSING NEEDS YOU SAW IN LATINO COMMUNITIES AND HOW DID THE COALITION ADDRESS THESE ISSUES?

>> I WOULD SAY, YOU KNOW, WHAT WE REALLY REALIZE WE NEEDED WAS LANGUAGE ACCESS CULTURAL COMPETENCY AT <íz[█THE HEIGHT O PANDEMIC.

OUR COMMUNITY WAS NOT GETTING COVID-19 INFORMATION.

WE WEREN'T GETTING INFORMATION IN THE RIGHT LANGUAGE.

I AM NOT JUST SPEAKING ABOUT SPANISH.

WE HAVE A VERY LARGE INDIGENOUS COMMUNITY AS WELL.

RINGS WERE NOT BEING TRANSLATED.

THINGS WERE NOT BEING SHARED IN A CULTURALLY COMPETENT WAY.

IT REALLY OPENED THE DOOR FOR THIS INFORMATION ON COVID TO MAKE ITS WAY THROUGH, WHICH THEN BECAME ANOTHER BARRIER WHEN THE VACCINE BECAME AVAILABLE.

FOLKS WERE SCARED.

>> FOR SPANISH SPEAKERS, IT'S HARD ENOUGH, I CAN IMAGINE FOR TRANSLATION.

YOUR ORGANIZATION HAS PROGRAM TO FOCUS ON ADDRESSING DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AND SEXUAL VIOLENCE.

HOW DID YOU SEE THE PANDEMIC IMPACT THE PEOPLE YOU ARE SERVING?

>> FOR MANY SURVIVORS OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE, WE SAW AN INCREASE IN TERMS OF THE NUMBER OF CASES.

IN FACT, WORLDWIDE, EXPERTS CALLED THE PANDEMIC FOR DOMESTIC VIOLENCE THE DOUBLE PANDEMIC.

THE CASES WERE MORE NUMEROUS AND MORE INTENSIVE IN TERMS OF THE EXPERIENCES SURVIVORS WERE FACING.

THE AGGRAVATION OF HAVING ECONOMIC STRESS BECAUSE ESSENTIAL WORKERS MAKE UP SUCH A LARGE POPULATION AND THE INFECTION RATES, BECAUSE THE MULTIGENERATIONAL HOUSEHOLDS REALLY DRASTICALLY IMPACTED THE WELL-BEING OF OUR SURVIVORS THAT WE WERE SEEING.

>> WHAT ARE YOU SEEING WITH THE LACK OF ACCESS TO QUALITY, TRUSTWORTHY INFORMATION DURING THE PANDEMIC?

>> THAT WAS A MAJOR ROLE, A MAJOR IMPORTANT THING WE ALL HAD TO OVERCOME.

IT WAS A BARRIER WE HAD TO OVERCOME.

IT DOES OPEN THE DOOR FOR DISINFORMATION.

IT IS VERY IMPORTANT FOR ALL OF US IN THE MEDICAL COMMUNITY, PUBLIC HEALTH, AND AS A SOCIETY, TO DELIVER CULTURALLY COMPETENT AND SENSITIVE INFORMATION.

I THINK LOCAL MEDIA, PARTICULARLY SPANISH-SPEAKING CHANNELS, REALLY DID A GREAT JOB OF DELIVERING IMPORTANT INFORMATION WHEN MOST NEEDED.

>> YOUR ORGANIZATION WAS RECENTLY IN SPRINGFIELD ADVOCATING FOR WORKPLACE HEALTH AND SAFETY LEGISLATION.

HOW DOES THE PANDEMIC SHED A LIGHT ON THE IMPORTANCE OF WORKPLACE HEALTH AND SAFETY?

>> I THINK IT MADE IT VERY CLEAR, FOR THOSE WHO WORK IN THAT SECTOR, SO MANY OF US HAVE LIVED EXPERIENCES WITH PARENTS OR ELDERS WHO WERE IN MANUFACTURING AND MEATPACKING, OUR COMMUNITIES ARE UNDERREPRESENTED IN THOSE SECTORS, BUT THE PANDEMIC MADE IT VERY CLEAR TO US THAT THAT BECAME THE MOST DANGEROUS PLACE TO WORK.

WHETHER IT WAS MANUFACTURING OR AND HOSPITALITY.

A LOT OF HER FAMILY MEMBERS ALSO WORKING CARE.

THEY COULDN'T PIVOT AND WORK FROM HOME.

THEY HAD TO WORK IN PERSON.

THEY COULDN'T PHYSICALLY REALLY BECAME AN UNSAFE PLACE.

THOSE ARE SOME OF OUR LESSONS LEARNED.

RIGHT NOW, WE'RE HOPING THAT LEGISLATION THAT WOULD PROVIDE OPPORTUNITIES FOR WORKERS TO IDENTIFY THOSE HAZARDOUS AND UNSAFE WORKING CONDITIONS HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO LEFT THOSE UP SO WE DON'T HAVE TO LEARN THESE LESSONS.

WE HAVE PAID WITH OUR LIVES.

>> WHAT WOULD YOU SAY WAS THE TOUGHEST PART FOR THE CITY TO HELP IN THE PROCESS OF GETTING PEOPLE HEALTHY AND THE HELP THEY NEEDED, PEOPLE THAT WERE GETTING SICK FROM COVID AND SEEING SO MANY PEOPLE IN THE HOSPITALS?

>> I THINK, FOR US, THE MOST STRIKING REALITY IS MISTRUST WITH THE VACCINES.

STILL TODAY, 15% OF THE LATINO POPULATION HAS TAKEN THE BIVALENT VACCINATION.

IT IS REACHING OUT, APPROPRIATE LANGUAGE, STILL WE HAVE TO TRUST .

THERE IS DISINFORMATION.

WE WANT TO REVAMP OUR PUBLIC HEALTH SYSTEM, THE HEALTHCARE SYSTEM OVERALL, SO PEOPLE SEE US AS THE EXTENSION OF THE HELP THEY NEED TO BRING DOWN THOSE BARRIERS.

THERE ARE SIGNIFICANT BARRIERS.

STILL A LOT OF WORK TO DO.

>> IS A CITY BETTY PREPARED?

NO ONE WANTS ANOTHER PANDEMIC AND OBVIOUSLY.

>> WE BETTER BE PREPARED.

WE ARE INVESTING IN THOSE PLACES WE NEED, ESPECIALLY AS WE'RE TALKING ABOUT MENTAL HEALTH NOW, TO BRING THAT BACK TO THE COMMUNITY.

>> COULD YOU TALK ABOUT WHAT IT LOOKED LIKE DURING THE PANDEMIC?

>> COMMUNITY HEALTH WORKERS WERE A VITAL PIECE.

WE HAVE USED THIS MODEL FOR MANY YEARS.

SO MANY OTHER PARTNER ORGANIZATIONS HAVE.

THEY HAVE THE TRUST OF COMMUNITY MEMBERS.

THEY KNOW THE COMMUNITIES BEST.

THEY LIVE IN THOSE COMMUNITIES AND NO WHERE THERE ARE AREAS WHERE THEY CAN MAKE A GREAT IMPACT AND SHARE INFORMATION, BECAUSE THEY ARE PART OF THE COMMUNITY.

THEY KNOW SOME OF THE DOUBTS AND FEARS AND CONCERNS THAT MAY COME FROM THEIR FAMILY ABOUT TAKING THE COVID VACCINE, ARE FINDING HEALTH ACCESS.

THAT IS IMPORTANT TO US.

ONE THING WE HAVE LEARNED FROM THIS IS THAT WE HAVE TO MAKE SURE WE HAVE COMMUNITY DRIVEN APPROACHES SO WHEN THEY SHARE WITH US, I HAVE MEDICAL DEBT, HOW CAN I KEEP GOING TO A DOCTOR AND SEEKING SERVICES?

THE FACT THAT THEY HAVE LACK OF HEALTH INSURANCE.

ALL THAT NEEIdTO BE GOING BACK TO ALL OF US TO FIGURE OUT HOW WE CAN HAVE SOLUTIONS.

VERY IMPORTANT CONCERNS.

>> KNOWING THE IMPORTANCE, THE IMPORTANCE OF KNOWING THE RESOURCES ARE OUT THERE AS WELL.

THE BIDEN ADMINISTRATION PLANS TO LET THE COVID PUBLIC HEALTH EMERGENCY EXPIRE IN MAY.

WE'RE TALKING LESS THAN TWO MONTHS.

WHAT ARE THE MAJOR LESSONS LEARNED, AND WHAT ARE WE BETTER PREPARED FOR FROM THE PUBLIC HEALTH STANDPOINT TO ADDRESS INEQUITIES GOING FORWARD?

>> THIS WON'T BE THE LAST PANDEMIC.

THE LESSONS LEARNED WILL CERTAINLY HELP US IN FUTURE PANDEMICS.

I THINK ONE OF THE BIG POSITIVE THINGS THE SCIENTIFIC AND MEDICAL COMMUNITY WAS ABLE TO DO WAS TO LEVERAGE OUR RESOURCES INTO HIGH QUALITY CLINICAL STUDIES THAT BROUGHT US VACCINES AND TREATMENTS.

I THINK FROM AN EQUITY STANDPOINT, INCLUDING POPULATIONS AND ALSO DELIVERING THESE VACCINES THROUGH COMMUNITY INTERVENTIONS IS KEY.

>> CAN OFFICIALS AND ORGANIZATIONS CONTINUE TO PROTECT AND ADDRESS THE LATINOS , THE NEEDS OF LATINOS?

HOW CAN OFFICIALS DO THIS?

>> WE DON'T HAVE A CHOICE.

WE NEED TO STEP IN AND MAKE SURE THERE IS RESTORATIVE JUSTICE AND EQUITY SO LATINOS WHO ARE THE DRIVING FORCE OF OUR ECONOMY ARE ABLE TO RECOVER THEMSELVES.

SO OUR CITIES ECONOMIES, ESTATE AND COUNTRY CAN RECOVER.

>> THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR JOINING US.

WE COULD MAKE A WHOLE SHOW OUT OF THIS.

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR JOINING US.