Latinos in Rural Nebraska Still Lag in Vaccination Rates

April 19, 2021, 10:27 p.m. ·

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With the continued rollout of vaccines across the country, individuals who identify as Hispanic or Latino are falling behind. According to a report in the New York Times, 11% of Nebraskans are Latino, but only 4% are fully vaccinated.

According to the report, Nebraska is slowly closing its gap between the Latino population and vaccination rates. Dr. Athena Ramos, a professor at the University of Nebraska Medical Center said a total of 12% of Latinos in the state are either partially or fully vaccinated.

Dr. Ramos said access to information and resources is the biggest issue with vaccinating the Latino community in Nebraska.

“We want to make it easy for them. Make it easy for them to find information about the vaccine and for them to make the decision to get vaccinated,” Ramos said.

According to a report from the CDC, the Hispanic community is at 3.1% greater risk for hospitalizations due to Covid-19 and 2.3% greater risk for death in comparison to other ethnic groups.

Considering the data, several health districts across the state have partnered with large employers. Teresa Anderson, the health director in Grand Island, said the Central District Health Department partnered with JBS’ meatpacking plant and vaccinated 75% of its employees on site. JBS employs many Latinos, and it had the most Covid-19 cases among its workers at the start of the pandemic.

“We were working hard to help them understand the needs of distancing as we do with all of our other populations as well,” Anderson said.

Anderson said they’re now expanding their vaccine clinic hours and partnering with local organizations, including the Multicultural Coalition and United Way to vaccinate more Latinos by going to their workplaces and communities.

But rural areas in the state are struggling a bit more to reach the Hispanic population.

“They have limited infrastructure, bilingual infrastructure, and they have limited money and dollars that they have to focus on these efforts,” Dr. Ramos from UNMC said.

But Valeria Rodriguez, the founder of Empowering Families in Scottsbluff, is collaborating with the Panhandle Public Health District to help the Latino community register and learn about the vaccines.

Two bilingual vaccine clinics were set-up in Scottsbluff last week and over 100 people were vaccinated. They were set-up in the East Overland neighborhood where the largest Hispanic community lives.

“Just hearing our community about how thankful they’re that we’re doing this and that they can call someone and on the end of the line it’s someone that speaks their language,” Rodriguez said.

Rodriguez said the trust between the community members and the organizers is very important to reach and help the Latino community.

“Really ensuring that when we’re talking about accessibility, we’re really asking those questions about “are we being accessible?” “Is this opportunity, is this resource really accessible for all people,” Rodriguez said.

Rodriguez plans to organize two additional vaccine clinics to help with the vaccine disparity among Latinos in western Nebraska.

Josie Rodriguez is the Administrator of Nebraska’s Department of Health and Human Services Office of Health Disparities and Health Equity and she said the department is partnering with health districts across the state target the Hispanic and Latino community.

“That’s been very important because a lot of individuals may be hesitant and this has been able to kind of dispel some of the myths that are out there and answer some of their questions,” Rodriguez said.

Rodriguez said she recommends all individuals to do their own research on the vaccines and attend the bilingual town halls being offered through Facebook Live.