COVID-19 Susceptibility Among Latin People in El Paso, TX

Abstract

The Latin population in the United States has received relatively little attention despite their vulnerability to COVID-19 during the current pandemic. On Monday, May 4, 2020, the City of El Paso recorded 1,029 cases and 22 deaths. With rising rates of infection and the recent resignation of the city’s Public Health Director, El Paso and the region must take proactive precautions to suppress the spread of the virus. To assess the possible impact of COVID-19 in El Paso, we constructed a risk assessment about the populations that could be at higher risk. To do this, we used detailed survey data on health from a sample of 1,152 Hispanic individuals that was gathered with the support of NIH in 2011. To understand how COVID-19 may impact the Latin residents of El Paso, we analyzed risk factors associated with the virus on their own as well as interacting with each other.

Note: Funding: The data was gathered as part of the project “Social Determinants of Physical and Mental Health of Migrant and Transient Populations: Health Disparities amongst Hispanics in El Paso” which was supported by Award Number P20MD00287 from the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities to UTEP’s Hispanic Health Disparities Research Center.

Declaration of Interest: None to declare

Keywords: Health Disparities, Hispanic Health Dispaties, Latino Population, Sociology of Health, COVID-19, Border