Uninsured Working Latinos and COVID-19: Essential Businesses at Risk

“Seek treatment by calling your doctor” if you have a fever, dry cough, or breathing difficulties, says the State of California Department of Public Health. But how will you pay for the doctor’s examination, a coronavirus test, and, if you test positive, any subsequent costs for treatment for COVID-19?

If you live in the United States, the questions of “Who will pay for the coronavirus test?” or “Who will pay if I have to go to the hospital?” are foremost in the minds of many who have symptoms of the virus and wonder what they should do.

While much of the state’s population has been able to practice “social distancing” and stay home to avoid exposure to the coronavirus, Latino workers fill a large percentage of the essential jobs that make staying home possible for others.

The nature of these jobs—from checkout clerk to nursing home attendant—exposes them to many potential coronavirus carriers and a consequent high risk of catching the coronavirus. Yet the Latinos working these essential jobs are twice as likely as non-Latinos to be uninsured.

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Uninsured Working Latinos and COVID-19: Essential Business at Risk