The Impact of Systemic Racism on Latinxs’ Experiences with Health Care

Abstract

Race is a social construct that categorizes individuals by markers of difference, including phenotype, nationality, ethnicity, language, or immigration status. Racism is a system that allocates valued collective resources based on race. Racism is maintained by the idea that the white race is superior to other races and therefore has preferential access to resources for advancement. Systemic racism upholds, perpetuates, and justifies racism through institutions, including the health-care system. Systemic racism in health care leads to negative health outcomes for Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC). The United States Office of Management and Budget (OMB) defines Hispanic, Latina/o, Latinx as an ethnicity that can be of any race. Latinxs experience systemic racism in the US health-care system at four levels: the (1) policy, (2) geographic, (3) organizational, and (4) interpersonal levels. First, anti-immigrant policies deter Latinxs from accessing health care, thus perpetuating health and mental health disparities. Second, immigrant enforcement policies differ by state, and access to health-care resources depends on where Latinxs live (e.g., urban versus rural, traditional enclave versus new destination). Third, systemic racism is embedded in health-care organizations, compromising the quality of care that Latinxs receive. Finally, some Latinxs experience racism and discrimination at the interpersonal level when interacting with health-care providers. This bibliography consists of peer-reviewed articles that highlight the impact of systemic racism among Latinxs at these four levels. The use of the term “Latinx” is used throughout this bibliography to be explicitly inclusive of multiple genders that are typically not represented by other terms. However, we advise that those working with Latinx populations (clinicians, researchers) use the preferred terms by which individuals identify.