San Francisco has around 1,200 COVID-19 cases, and 25 percent of these patients are Latinos, according to a recently published article.


25 Percent of the Total COVID-19 Cases in San Francisco are Latinos

San Francisco, a city in California, has an estimated population of more than 883,000 according to the data gathered by the World Population Review. Meanwhile, 15 percent of San Francisco's total population is composed of Latinos. 

Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital reported recently that 80 percent of their hospitalized patients due to COVID-19 related cases are Latinos. Overall, a quarter or 25 percent of 1,200 COVID-19 cases in the city are Latinos, according to a published article.


Factors Why Latinos Are Hit Hard by the Virus

Mayor London Breed and other city officials believe that one of the factors why there is a considerable number of Latinos infected by the virus compared to different ethnicities is due to the nature of their work in the city. 

Most Latinos work as home care aides or other related jobs that require them to go out of the house. They also frequently shop due to their limited income and making them exposed to the public. Also, Latino residents are living in multi-family or multi-generational housing.

Moreover, the number of COVID-19 cases in the city are expected to increase as more tests are now being conducted. This means that the city officials are expecting a surge of COVID-19 patients in the city in the coming days.


City Health Director Urging Latinos to Participate in the Contact Tracing

Dr. Grant Colfax, the city's health director, said: "Health emergencies exploit the inequalities in society. People with fewer resources, chronic illnesses, underlying health conditions, and who have experienced institutionalized stigma and discrimination are going to be more at risk for getting sick." 

Colfax also urged Latinos to participate in the contact tracing because some of them declined to cooperate. The primary purpose of the contact tracing is to control the spread of the virus. Some Latinos would not participate due to their immigration status.

The city held a webinar on the tracing program and has been passing and posting fliers using the Spanish language, informing the Latino community that there will be no personal information about them that will be given to the immigration agents.


Statewide COVID-19 Cases by Race

There is a disparity or difference of COVID-19 cases in California when grouped according to race. 6 percent of the state's total population are composed of African-Americans, but 12 percent of COVID-19 related deaths came from the same group.

Meanwhile, 30 percent of COVID-19 related deaths in the state is coming from the Latino community. Moreover, 39 percent of the state's total population are Latinos, and many of them are undocumented that hinders them from going to the hospitals and avail healthcare services because they might be deported.

It was also found out that the Latino Mission District had a relatively high number of infections. Almost 100 residents of the shelter tested positive for the virus, and they were moved into hotel rooms leased by the city.  


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