Limited Impact of Delta Variant’s Mutations on the Effectiveness of Neutralization Conferred by Natural Infection or COVID-19 Vaccines in a Latino Population

The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has impacted public health systems all over the world. The Delta variant seems to possess enhanced transmissibility, but no clear evidence suggests it has increased virulence. Our data show that pre-exposed individuals had similar neutralizing activity against the authentic COVID-19 strain and the Delta and Epsilon variants. After only one vaccine dose, the neutralization capacity expanded to all tested variants in pre-exposed individuals. Healthy vaccinated individuals showed a limited breadth of neutralization. One vaccine dose did induce similar neutralizing antibodies against the Delta as against the authentic strain. However, even after two doses, this capacity only expanded to the Epsilon variant.

Illinois Unidos: A Community Demands Equity, Justice, and Inclusion

At the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, neither government officials nor members of the news media fully grasped what was happening in the Latino community. Underreporting of COVID-19 cases led to a systematic neglect of the Latino population and resulted in disproportionately high rates of infection, hospitalization, and death. Illinois Unidos was formed to engage in community mobilization, health communication, advocacy, and policy work in response to inequalities exacerbated by COVID-19 in Latino communities in Illinois. (Am J Public Health. 2021;111(S3):S204–S207. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2021.306407 )

Differential Access to Park Space Based on Country of Origin within Miami’s Hispanic/Latino Population: A Novel Analysis of Park Equity

Some U.S.-based park equity studies reveal that affluent and White neighborhoods have privileged access to greenspace. In such studies in the U.S. and elsewhere, park access indicators are typically examined in relation to measures of income, housing tenure, and broad race/ethnicity categories (e.g., Hispanic/Latino, Black, and White in the U.S.). The treatment of people as monolithic ethnic groups in park equity research is potentially misleading, particularly in global cities where ethnic populations are highly heterogeneous. In this study, we assess inequities in access to park space within the diverse Hispanic/Latino population of the Miami Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) based on national origin. We specified multivariable generalized estimating equations to examine social correlates of area-weighted park access at the census tract level. Our first model includes a variable for the proportion of the tract population of Hispanic/Latino ethnicity, which we substitute in the second model with variables representing the proportions of the tract population from the most populous country-of-origin groups in the MSA applicable to the Hispanic/Latino population. Our first model indicates robust negative relationships for the proportion Hispanic/Latino and Black/African American variables with area-weighted park access, adjusting for median household income, renter-occupancy, and old and young population composition. Our second model indicates negative relationships based on Cuban and Venezuelan neighborhood composition, while the four other country-of-origin subgroup variables exhibit statistically non-significant associations with area-weighted park access. Study findings have implications for the analysis of ethnicity categories in park equity research and interventions to promote park equity, especially in global cities.

A Meta-Analysis of Mental Health among Latino Adults: Elucidating Disparities from Differences

Latinos continue to experience acute disparities in access to treatment for mental health, and these differences appear to be worsening with time. However, comparisons between Latinos and non-Latino Whites are of limited utility, because of the heterogeneity of the Latino population with respect to country of origin, migration history, and reception in the United States. This meta-analysis of the recent literature on the heterogeneity of mental health disparities among Latinos by making 3 important comparisons (1) Studies with Comparison across Latino Origin Groups, (2) Studies with Comparison Across Immigration-related Characteristics, and (3) Studies with Comparison with non-Latino Groups.