Skip to Content
/ Articles / Health & Wellness /

Third Annual Latino Health Summit Coming to Reading April 7-8

By Latino Connection

Mar 08, 2023

Hosted by Latino Connection, the Latino Health Summit invites public, businesses, and sponsors to join in the 2023 theme of “restoring and transforming health in our communities.”

READING – The Third Annual Latino Health Summit and Adelante Health & Wellness Expo will take place on April 7-8 at the Doubletree in Reading. This year’s event will bring together executives and professionals in areas of healthcare, social services, and public health for engaging professional workshops that share fresh perspectives informed by real-world experience in local communities.

Latino Connection created the Latino Health Summit in 2018, a first-of-its-kind statewide event in Pennsylvania that brings to the forefront a topic that had rarely been discussed at length: Latino health. The goal of these events is to elevate the most pressing issues of the Latino community across Pennsylvania by bringing together influential thought leaders, private and public-sector organizations, and members of the community to grow together in a collaborative and uplifting environment.

Founder and CEO of Latino Connection, George Fernandez, states, “In order to achieve meaningful, lasting change toward better public health, especially among minority populations, it requires long term commitments to evolve toward diversity and inclusion. This should be a fundamental requirement for health care organizations and leaders throughout our community. And it’s precisely what the Latino Health Summit hopes to achieve by creating a space for collaborative discussions and educational opportunities.”

The Latino community is the fastest growing segment of our population, accounting for more than 50% of the state’s growth in the last 2 decades. By 2040, multicultural segments will represent the majority of the Commonwealth. Reading was selected as this year’s host city for its dense Latino population; 1 in 4 residents of Berks County are Latino. Additionally, the percentage of adults in Berks County who report their health as fair or poor has increased from 16.0% in 2011–2013 to 19.0% in 2015–2017. In Reading, about 18% of Latinos do not have health insurance, a rate that’s nearly 8% higher than the county average.

The first Latino Health Summit took place in Lancaster in 2018 and then moved to York in 2019. This is the first time the event will return since COVID-19. It is expected to host more than 1,000 attendees who will hear from more than 50+ presenters and sponsors on topics such as:

  • COVID Recovery and Lessons Learned
  • Community Health Work and Other Public Outreach Strategies
  • Digital Equity
  • Reproductive Health and Justice
  • Role of Latinos in Politics
  • Latino Leadership in Public Health and Healthcare
  • Physical and Behavioral Health
  • Infrastructure and Policy
  • Data, Evaluation, and Research

This event shines a light on an issue that affects over 1,000,000 Pennsylvanians. To ensure its success, the Latino Health Summit is actively seeking businesses, practitioners, non-profits, and other organizations to become a sponsor or vendor. More information can be found by visiting www.latinoconnection.org/events/latino-health-summit. The Latino Health Summit is a ticketed event. The Adelante Health & Wellness Expo is free.

We need your support!

Your contribution makes community media possible.

A donation of any size to your nonprofit media organization supports the future of media access in our community - the things you love, and the places you care about, by the people you know.

Live Streaming