Dr. Illan Shapiro is an outspoken and solid voice for the needs of the Latino community.
“It is a unique opportunity that we have with the new government of Mexico. Our community needs many things; we have mental health problems, overweight, diabetes, and more. The health issue must be a binational agenda for migrants,” says Dr. Shapiro, Chief Health Correspondent and Medical Affairs Officer, SVP of AltaMed Health Services.
Karina Ruiz, the first Dreamer to be elected as senator of Mexico, has said that healthcare is her priority.
“For migrants, health insurance is denied, so health services are very expensive. We need to see how we can help this population from Mexico,” Karina told Parriva.
For Shapiro, this is a key issue. “My Christmas wish for the President-elect of Mexico is that she comes and spends two days seeing what we do, understanding the community’s problems, and helping us with resources. It is our community, the Mexican community.”
The Latino community has a high incidence of problems with diabetes, overweight, and hypertension in general. These issues are not only related to cultural problems but also economic ones. The migratory and economic phenomenon has pushed the population to develop habits that generally have not contributed to the health of migrants.
“The first step is to recognize that we have a problem. We live in a sick society. The pandemic showed us that we can do something about it. A movement of community health workers was created to help the community collectively. That spirit can be replicated now, but Mexico also needs to recognize this. We send millions in remittances; we deserve this, the attention and help. Expand health windows in consulates, provide resources for health organizations. We are not here to ask but to demand that right,” says Dr. Shapiro, who is of Mexican origin.
For this health activist, the migrant community has shown its fighting spirit.
“Our community is very hardworking; we might lack toilet paper in our homes, but not food,” he says.
An important element is the development of a program to advance Mexican professionals who can interact with migrant communities. Currently, different organizations maintain exchanges to bring Mexican doctors to care for migrants.
The Licensed Physicians from Mexico Pilot Program (LPMPP) was introduced as Assembly Bill 1045 in 2001 by California Assembly member Marco Antonio Firebaugh. The State Assembly passed the bill in 2002, allowing up to 30 licensed family medicine and internal medicine physicians with a medical license from Mexico to practice at California Community Health Centers (CHCs) for three years. The program participants are issued a license by the Medical Board of California and a working visa to practice medicine in CHCs.
Currently, around 30 Mexican doctors serve majority Latino and farmworker populations in clinics across Monterey, San Benito, Tulare, and Los Angeles Counties. As of last December, the doctors had treated tens of thousands of Californians, according to the California Health Care Foundation.
But it is not enough. We need not tens, but thousands of doctors.
“I totally agree, we need more help, more doctors, and more resources. Ultimately, issues like mental health, diabetes, and overweight involve both countries. We have to tackle it jointly,” says Dr. Shapiro.
For him, there is a key factor.
“During the pandemic, we discovered telemedicine. It’s there; we need to make use of it,” he concludes.
“Mental health is like the skin. We only pay attention to it when we get burned.”
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