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Initiative Aims to Improve Health Care for Elderly Hispanics

By Jennifer L. Berghom, The Monitor

July 1, 2007

The Rio Grande Valley could help the country figure out how to close the gap in health care for elderly Hispanics. 

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services plans to launch a nationwide initiative to end the disparity in health care between elderly Hispanics and their white counterparts. 

The department opened an invitation to nine communities throughout the country with large Hispanic populations to apply to become part of a yearlong pilot project. 

McAllen and three other Texas locations — El Paso, Houston and San Antonio — are included. Also invited are Chicago, Miami, Los Angeles and New York. 

John Wren, deputy assistant secretary for the Health and Human Services Department’s Administration on Aging, said the initiative stems from a report the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality released in 2006 that shows persistent disparities in health care for Hispanics. 

According to the National Healthcare Disparities Report, Hispanics over the age of 65 are less likely than elderly white people to receive vaccinations for pneumonia or influenza, have control of their diabetes and undergo cancer screenings. 

Wren said the agencies involved are looking for ways to encourage Hispanics to take 
advantage of new Medicare benefits as well as develop a network for communities to communicate what they’re doing to improve health care for their citizens. 

The department plans to choose seven of those communities to receive a two-day training session in Washington and participate in the pilot project. 

The department’s Agency on Healthcare Research and Quality, Administration on Aging, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and the Health Resources and Services Administration are working together on the initiative and will provide research and other tools to the participating communities, Wren said. 

“It’s a great partnership opportunity,” he said. 

The federal government is calling on local area agencies on aging to spearhead the projects. 

Jose Gonzalez, director of the Area Agency on Aging of the Lower Rio Grande Valley, said the agency has started meeting with various health organizations to determine where there are disparities and what can be done to improve care. 

“We don’t want to decide (what the focus will be). We want to bring them all in,” Gonzalez said. 

He said the invitation presents the community with more challenges than the other cities in developing a plan. 

“When they’re looking at McAllen they’re actually inviting the whole region. Our population is more spread out,” he said. 

Hidalgo County Health Department’s chief administrative officer, Eduardo Olivarez, said his office hasn’t been approached yet, but that the department is willing and ready to help the agency and other organizations involved. 

“Our door is open,” Olivarez said. 

The deadline for the nine communities to apply is July 24. Wren said the communities chosen should be notified within three to four weeks after the deadline. 


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