More Research Needed on Latino Youth Health Disparities, New York Times Says
"Much more" research into the health disparities experienced by Latino children is "clearly necessary," a New York Times editorial says, noting that Latino children "suffer from a disproportionate number of health problems that have been poorly studied." Some of the disparities can be attributed to the fact that Latino children are less likely than other children to have health coverage. However, insurance discrepancies cannot explain why Latino children who are hospitalized with limb fractures receive less pain medication than other children, the Times says. The Times states that another "obvious place to start narrowing the health gap for Latino children is ... language barriers." In August 2000, former President Clinton signed an executive order mandating that physicians who received Medicaid or Medicare payments provide interpreter services for non-English-speaking clients. But national medical associations have opposed the mandate as "too costly," the editorial notes, concluding, "Given the disturbing data on the state of Latino children's health, their objections send the wrong message" (New York Times, 7/26).
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