Xavier Becerra kicks off Latino health tour in Sacramento
The president's advisor in charge of public health for the country paid a visit to Sacramento to launch a nationwide campaign to aid underserved communities and people of color.
Xavier Becerra, who once served as California's top prosecutor before joining Joe Biden's cabinet as U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary, announced on Friday the start of the "Latino Health Tour," which aims to bring health services and care to communities who would otherwise be unable to gain access to such care.
The health services include vaccinations against COVID-19, which UC Davis Health months ago launched mobile vaccination sites to help people in getting their protection against the virus.
José Antonio Martínez is one of those people now better protected against COVID-19. He said these clinics have made it easier to get vaccinated rather than asking or driving around different places to get access to the treatment. He's now double boosted and part of the reason is that the mobile clinics have made it to his children's school, giving him and his entire family the opportunity to get vaccinated right there.
"Move It Up project was in a few months able to reach more than 6,000 vaccines — 50% of them with Latinos," said Dr. Sergio Aguilar Gaxiola, director of the center for reducing health disparities at UC Davis.
Becerra says that the public health crisis left a lesson about long-existing inequities in health care and how leaders can better serve the underserved.
"What we're going to try to do is prove to America and quite honestly prove to these families that no one needs to be left behind when it comes to health," Becerra told KCRA 3 during a media conference, adding that it's typically communities of color who are the most impacted.
The Latino Health Tour is teaming up with community partners and health systems like UC Davis in hopes of bringing people like José, who are satisfied and happy with mobile clinics like this one, information in their native language and ease access to health care.
UC Davis Health CEO, David Lubarsky said that it is, "Absolutely committed across both Yolo, and Sacramento County, and the entire farming region to try and reach into those communities in a way that's culturally and linguistically appropriate to gain people's trust and to give them the preventative medicine that will prevent them from becoming our patients."
The national launch of a more extensive campaign to inform people about updating their vaccines before the flu season begins starts on Oct. 17.
Becerra also brought a message from President Joe Biden: Everyone counts and it doesn't matter where you come from.
He adds that maternal health and behavioral health campaigns are also underway to be launched in the country.