Why healthcare providers must tap the Hispanic market

Hispanic Americans are a growing, largely untapped market for the healthcare industry, with 10 million eligible to gain health coverage under the Affordable Care Act, according to a new report from PwC's Health Research Institute (HRI).

To gain a better understanding of this community, healthcare providers should consider these six findings: 

  • Hispanics are primarily concerned with healthcare costs. Forty-six percent of Hispanics named it as the most important aspect, compared to 35 percent of non-Hispanics. Fifty-three percent of non-Hispanics said quality was most important, compared to 42 percent of Hispanics.

  • More Hispanics than non-Hispanics get information about doctors and insurers through social media, mobile apps and online search engines, and their care decisions are influenced by the information they find.

  • Thirty-three percent of Hispanics are unwilling to share personal information, regardless of benefits they might receive, compared to 26 percent of other consumers.

  • Hispanics are less likely than others to use a doctor to treat non-emergency conditions, and more open to non-traditional providers, such as retail clinics, pharmacists and community health clinics.

  • Because Hispanics are more likely to live in multi-generational households, they may help manage the conditions of family members who are unfamiliar with the healthcare system.

  • Many Hispanics, independent of income, insurance status and education, prefer to cross borders for care and lower-cost medications.

"I definitely think that Hispanics are paving the way when it comes to the use of technology, particularly social media," HRI Managing Director Ceci Connolly told NBC News. "It surprised us a little bit that they are ahead of the rest of the country when you look at how they live their lives and in the way that they talk about having multiple jobs, being on the go. They really live their lives on their devices."

Healthcare organizations should use this information to develop outreach strategies and non-traditional health offerings to this community, HRI said in an announcement about the report. It recommends organizations work harder to earn Hispanic consumers' trust, emphasize their online and mobile presence, and make an effort to better understand the cultural nuances of the Hispanic community.

To learn more:
- read the report (.pdf)
- check out the announcement
- here's the NBC News article