Obama reassures Latinos on swine flu efforts

By Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar

Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Barack Obama sought Friday to reassure Hispanics that swine flu won't lead to an epidemic of discrimination in the United States just because Mexico has been the epicenter of the outbreak.

At a town hall-style meeting at the White House, Obama told about 130 Latino public health professionals and neighborhood volunteers that the nation's plan to fight the flu will not exclude their communities. Even if some residents are here illegally, they will still be able to get medical care for the flu, administration officials assured the group.

"We're one country, we're one community. When one person gets sick, that has the potential of making us all sick," Obama said. "We can't be divided by communities." Obama spoke in English to open a town-hall style meeting that continued in Spanish after he left. The gathering was co-sponsored by the Spanish-language media company Univision. Excerpts will be broadcast on Spanish-language television programs around the country and in Latin America.

U.S. Latinos now number more than 45 million, and they constitute one of the fastest-growing demographic segments. At the same time, they are more than twice as likely to lack health insurance when compared to the overall population.

About two-thirds of U.S. Latinos are of Mexican heritage, and community leaders have been concerned that they will be stigmatized because of the outbreak. They watched with alarm as China isolated Mexican tourists and even Cuba canceled flights from Mexico.

Although such draconian measures have not been taken here, Jane Delgado, president of the National Alliance for Hispanic Health, said the apprehension has been building nevertheless. "I think there are Latinos who already feel they are being scapegoated for this virus," Delgado said in an interview earlier this week.

Administration officials, including Labor Secretary Hilda Solis, assured the group there was no need for fear. Continuing in Spanish after Obama left, the officials delivered a two-part message: The administration will protect the rights of Latinos, and medical care won't be denied to flu victims because they lack an immigration "green card."

"This is an American problem and not a problem of any specific community," said Tino Cuellar, a special assistant to the president for justice and regulatory policy.

Local community health centers, doctors' offices and hospital emergency rooms all provice medical care without requiring proof of legal immigration status, the officials said.

But they also stressed that Hispanic residents have a responsibility to help prevent transmission of the flu, even if it means staying home from work when families need the income.

"We all have responsibilities to prevent the flu, and to respect civil rights," Cuellar said.