Health Reform Creates New Jobs in California – In just a couple of weeks, the registration period begins for health insurance in California under the federal health reform. The state insurance market that will manage the plans is in the process of opening three call centers that will give jobs to hundreds of people, among them many Latinos. Araceli Martinez has the details from Rancho Cordova, where one of the call centers opened this month.
Native Americans Return to Roots to Combat Diabetes – American Indians have the highest rate of diabetes among all population groups of the United States. Several community centers and indigenous health centers are seeking to fight this illness and heal the community, growing traditional herbs and fresh vegetables, cooking with old recipes from the ancestors, and teaching and practicing traditional dance. Although it is a challenge to live healthy in the heart of the city, with little access to organic food, this is a challenge that the Intertribal Friendship House in Oakland, California has decided to take on. Our reporter Zaidee Stavely visited the Friendship House and has this story.
Demolition of Smelter in El Paso Brings Up New Questions – For more than a century, the copper smelter ASARCO was an icon of the border between El Paso, Texas and Ciudad Juarez, Chihuahua. The two 200-meter tall chimneys ceased to exist a few months ago, when they were destroyed as part of an environmental cleanup. Although ASARCO is now history, controversy continues about the extent of the pollution the company caused in its surroundings. The demolition raised new questions about new pollution it could have caused. Our correspondent Kent Paterson sends us this report from Ciudad Juarez, narrated by Ruben Tapia.
