Hispanic community worries about healthcare and mass shooting
Reuters

The Hispanic community has identified its top stressors: mass shooting and healthcare fees. The result reflects more vulnerabilities the minority group may be suffering from.

In a survey conducted by the American Psychological Association, the Hispanic group was polled with the Asians, Native Americans, white, and African-Americans. In general, the report states that the Americans blame the presidential elections, healthcare fees, and mass shootings as their top stressors.

As the election campaign heats up as 2020 nears, the stress that it brings to Americans are understandable. What may be surprising from the survey are the mass shootings and healthcare payments. The Hill reported that 84 percent of Hispanics blames mass shooting as their top stressor while the African-Americans and Asians were not far behind with 79 and 77 percent, respectively.

Coincidentally, a lot of shooting related events happened when the survey was being conducted in August and September this year. The perpetrators were said to have anti-Hispanic sentiments, making the fear of gun-related violence reasonable. Other results of the poll show that the white and African-Americans also fear paying for healthcare with 53 percent but only comes in second after the Hispanic sector with 55 percent.

The root of the anxiety and fear could be related to immigration crackdown of the current administration. There is a constant threat of deportation and Hispanic women face uncertainties that their partner can be taken anytime. Once this happens, the babies will not have a father growing up and the mother will have to raise the child alone. Most of those considered illegal immigrants are not covered under the insurance program. Last year, there is an increase in the number of Hispanic mothers losing their babies before turning one year old, WOSU Radio reported.

Katy Maistros, a midwife who works for Neighborhood Family Practice, thinks breaking the language barrier could help. "We have a group of Spanish speakers and we have a midwife who's proficient in Spanish. So they meet once a month on Tuesdays for prenatal care. I think that a support group could help something like this, but we don't have the numbers or the data to see if it will make a difference," she added.

Additionally, efforts have been implemented since 2014 to curb suicide rate among Latinos and Hispanics. Per the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, the population of Texas is projected to be composed of more Latinos and Hispanics (60 percent) by the middle of this century and Texas ranks high in suicide rate among Latinos living in the state. As preventive measure, the Mental Health America of Texas started the Texas Youth Suicide Prevention Project which aims to spread public awareness, train instructors how to intervene, and conduct trainings in schools and campuses.

It is no wonder that a lot of the presidential hopefuls are doing their best to get the approval and trust of the Latinos and Hispanics. The community may be small compared to Asians or African-Americans but their unity and vote can spell the difference between losing and winning.

Next year, the Hispanic community is hoping that the next elected leader will be able to change deportation policies and solve immigration crisis. Until then, stressors such as healthcare, deportation, and gun-related violence will continue to haunt them.