How health care budget cuts put vulnerable communities at risk

Proposed health care budget cuts in 2027 could lead to reduced services, potential hospital closures in rural areas and a negative impact on communities. How will health centers providing medical services to vulnerable populations continue to operate under the looming health care cuts? Pedro Cons, CEO of Adelante Healthcare, joined “Horizonte” to discuss the impact of providing health care in light of the budget cuts.

According to Cons, Adelante Healthcare is already preparing for the potential 2027 cuts. One way they’re doing this is exploring ways to leverage available resources and technology to prepare for potential staff reduction.

“One of the things that we’re really looking at is innovation in technology,” Cons said, “and how we can utilize some of the resources that we have out there currently, in our availability, to really have an impact in preparing for what may be inevitable. And that’s a reduction in staff or reduction in our ability to provide the care at the level that we’re currently providing.”

Cons explained Adelante Healthcare, founded in 1979 in a small trailer in El Mirage, Arizona, originally served farmworker communities with just one volunteer doctor. Today, Adelante Healthcare has grown into a large network with over 800 employees, serving 89,000 unique patients and supporting 225,000 women and children in its programs.

Additionally, more than 70% of Adelante Healthcare’s patients are Hispanic or Latino and 77% are women. Their centers deliver approximately 150 babies a month, provide pediatric, family and internal medicine services, offer dental and behavioral health care and continue to serve over 3,700 farmworkers.

“What keeps me hopeful every single day is the opportunity for us to get out there and serve. And when I go out there and I see our staff and what they do every single day and the passion that they bring, the commitment, it is truly inspiring,” Cons said.