Task Force to Address Farm Workers’ Health Problems
A 20-member task force has been formed to address a November study that found that California's agricultural workers face "alarmingly high" rates of stroke, heart disease and diabetes, the Ventura County Star reports. The commission, which will be chaired by former Rep. Esteban Torres (D), will meet Jan. 11 in Sacramento and in March will make recommendations to state and federal policymakers on how to improve farm workers' health care. The California Endowment-sponsored study, "Suffering in Silence: A Report on the Health of California's Agricultural Workers," found that "poor nutrition and little or no access to health care" contributed to the high rate of heart complications and diabetes among the farm workers (Hernandez, Ventura County Star, 12/27).
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