Was Live | Wed, Dec 21, 2022 | 11 am PT
Guest Speakers:
- Dr. Ilan Shapiro Strygler, Chief Health Correspondent and Medical Affairs Officer at AltaMed
- Ed Kissam, member of the National Center for Farmworker Health Advisory Committee to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
- Noe Paramo, Director of the Sustainable Rural Communities Project at the California Rural Legal Assistance Foundation
- Arcenio Lopez, Executive Director, Mixteco/Indigena Community Organizing Project
News Report from This Briefing
Event Overview
More than 500,000 people are employed in California’s massive agriculture industry, serving in all capacities from picking crops to working at packing plants. Crowded housing and work sites, along with daily exposure to poor air quality, harmful pesticides and a host of underlying conditions make California ag workers highly vulnerable to a Covid-19 infection. In 25 farm-worker communities infection rates were about 2.5 times higher than the state average.
Speakers will discuss the challenges of getting accurate data about the farm-worker community; the impact of expanded MediCal, which aims to provide health insurance to all Californians regardless of immigration status; the need for continuing a vigorous vaccination campaign including updated boosters; and measures to expand access to anti-viral treatment for farm-workers.
Presented by Ethnic Media Services
