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EFE NEWS SERVICE
Report Stresses Need To Help Hispanic Children
February 17, 2000
Copyright © 2000 EFE NEWS SERVICES (U.S.) INC. All Rights
Reserved.
Source: World Reporter (TM)
New York -- Among the child population of New York, Hispanic
children show the worst statistics in education, health, mortality
and care, said a report published here Thursday, partially blaming
the situation on the poverty of their families.
Published by the Puerto Rican Family Institute under the title
"Report on the Status of New York Hispanic Youth," the
document stresses the urgent need to help this sector of the population.
Hispanics represent 36.8 percent of the child population of
New York, followed by blacks with 29.9 percent, whites with 25.2
percent, and Asians with 7.8 percent.
Around 75 percent of the Latino children are born to poor families
as compared to only 22 percent of the white children and 48 percent
of the Asians.
In New York City, three Hispanic children die each day before
turning one year old, and one in every four newborns is the child
of a teenager, said the report, warning that four out of every
10 minors suffered abuse or neglect while one in every five was
put up for adoption.
Six out of 10 minors drop out of school before completing their
education and half the teenagers are unemployed.
Between 1991 and 1995, the number of Latino children using
city mental health programs increased from 33.8 to 39.8 percent.
The report ended with a series of recommendations, including
more funds and bilingual health programs for Hispanics, as well
increased cooperation between the state and municipal health departments,
schools, community groups and foundations offering services to
help Hispanics improve their living conditions.
The report added that a high percentage of Hispanic children
lacked Child Health Plus, the medical coverage offered by the
state, because it had been inadequately publicized and in the
case of undocumented immigrants, they feared signing up because
they feared being deported.
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