Springfield health officials admit they're struggling to cope with influx of unvaxxed Haitian patients who don't speak English
Springfield, Ohio’s public health infrastructure is struggling to keep up with an influx of Haitian immigrants who are largely unvaccinated against infectious diseases and who have not received basic medical care.
Health officials on the ground say
baseless and sensational rumors about immigrants have obscured the very real strain hospitals and clinics have felt after 12,000 to 15,000 Haitian immigrants arrived in the town over the past five years - boosting its population by 25 percent over the past three years.
In Haiti, polio vaccination rates have ranged between 60 and 90 percent, while measles vaccinations have hovered around 45 percent over the past four years, according to the
World Health Organization.
The
rapid influx of people in the small town has meant longer wait times to see a doctor for both citizens and new arrivals, as well as more time doctors must spend with patients due to the language barrier.
Gov Mike DeWine has
acknowledged the increasing pressure on Springfield's healthcare system has had detrimental effects on both immigrants and natural-born citizens.
Most Haitian
immigrants are in the US legally under the federal government’s program that allows people from Haiti to live and work in the US for a period of time because their home country is dealing with a myriad of issues, including fallout from a disastrous earthquake in 2010, persistent political unrest, and rampant gang violence.
In Ohio, there has been concern among county health officials about recent increases in
HIV infections identified there, though they have not attributed these increases directly to immigrants.
Springfield, Ohio's public health system is struggling to keep up with an influx of Haitian immigrants who are largely unvaccinated against infectious diseases and have not received basic medical care.
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