The Charlotte-based Camino Research Institute has published what it says is the first survey of its kind: an assessment the economic, physical, and educational needs of a representative sample of the 1.1 million residents of Latin American origin in North Carolina.
The Camino Research Institute surveyed nearly 3,400 Hispanic residents for its North Carolina Latino Strengths and Needs Assessment from 2021 to 2024, during the Joe Biden administration.
The study was primarily funded by Camino and focused on Mecklenburg County. It was published earlier this month.
The study's authors say it's the first statewide assessment of Latino needs of this scale since a 2003 report by the NC Latino Health Task Force, published by the North Carolina Institute of Medicine and the Raleigh advocacy nonprofit El Pueblo.
"While census data can help provide important demographic information of Latinos, updated research on the needs, perspectives, and experiences of Latinos is needed to better support this emerging population," the report says.
The findings say:
- Health care is an urgent need: The majority of the survey participants (60%) were uninsured, with both documented and undocumented respondents experiencing significant health care coverage challenges. 93% of undocumented residents surveyed were uninsured, compared with only 28% of permanent legal residents being uninsured. 40% of respondents with legal status or presence in the U.S. were uninsured.
- The majority of respondents (79%) said dental care was the most urgent healthcare need, 74% said preventative services, 72% said access to Spanish-speaking doctors and 63% said cancer screenings. 11% of undocumented residents (127 people) claimed to have never seen a doctor in the U.S, while 20% of all respondents visited a doctor in the last one to two years.
- A significant number of respondents highlighted a need for English classes, reliable internet, job training programs, financial literacy workshops and help with applying and paying for college.
- High economic participation: A majority of respondents said entrepreneurship, bilingualism, and work ethic were Latinos' top strengths. The survey findings reflected U.S. Census figures that show that 71% of working age Latinos are either employed or actively seeking work, higher than non-Latino white people (61%) and African Americans (64%). Many immigrants often work in lower-wage jobs after migrating despite having college degrees in their home countries or being skilled in other trades.
- Barriers to seeking care: Many survey respondents said cost and immigration fears were factors in avoiding seeking health care or other services. For example, some respondents feared that soliciting government assistance would jeopardize their path to U.S. citizenship. Respondents also said that many Latino immigrants do not approach healthcare in a preventative manner and tend to seek services until they are urgently ill.
- Reliance on faith and family: Over a third (34.6%) of people said God was where they first went when they have need. Family or friends was the second highest response and church or a pastor was the third highest. Only 3% said they turned to government agencies when they first have a need.
A variety of residency statuses were included to accurately reflect the demographics of the population: just under half (38%) of respondents were U.S. citizens or permanent residents and about 17% had a temporary status like a visa, DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) or Temporary Protected Status. A third of respondents were undocumented, lacking legal status or presence.
Camino's research director Lennin Caro said the second Trump administration is certain to change some of the lives of the survey's immigrant respondents.
"It's important to note that the data was collected during the Biden administration," said Caro. "If we started now instead of four years ago, yeah, it'd be more challenging to go to events, recruit people, convince them to participate. It took us a long time to build trust with other organizations ... it's all about trust."
Caro said the report's findings are not to argue that immigrants, particularly those without legal status, are more needy than other people.
"The social environment is structured in a way that it forces undocumented people to into a position to have more need for these kinds of services," Caro said.
Caro hopes lawmakers use the survey's findings to inform public policy and reduce barriers to economic growth and vital care for Latino residents, such as offering driver’s licenses to undocumented immigrants.
The report can be read online.
