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Objectives: Evaluated how COVID-19 impacted Latino health across social, economic, and emotional dimensions and differentiated whether adverse COVID-19-related effects persisted across respondents. Methods: In both English and Spanish, a cross-sectional survey was conducted in the USA from June 2021 to April 2022. Chi-square tests, Z-tests, and T-tests were used to test for significant differences between Spanish- and English-speaking respondents. Multiple linear regressions were carried out to understand whether previously established determinants of health for Latinos accounted for greater COVID-19-related adversity across social, economic, and mental health dimensions. English as a primary language was significantly related to greater adverse emotional/mental health COVID-19 experiences after controlling for other social determinants of health factors (β= − 0.355, p< 0.001). Individuals who reported worrying about housing loss were significantly more likely to experience more adverse economic adversity due to COVID-19 (β= − 0.234, p< 0.001). Household income < $35,000 (β= 0.083, p< 0.05), having more than 5 people living in the same home (β= −0.102, p< 0.05), and work-related transportation barriers (β= − 0.114, p< 0.05) all increased the likelihood of household-related stressors occurring because of the pandemic. Conclusions: The study highlights the heterogeneity in the Latino community and the key social, economic, and community-level factors most strongly correlated with adverse COVID-19-related outcomes.

Introduction: The COVID-19 pandemic’s economic fallout has further exacerbated the health and well-being among Hispanics/Latinos, who maybe overrepresented in essential job industries and are vulnerable to experiencing food insecurity. This study explores whether the COVID-19 pandemic affected food security status differently among Latino/Hispanic essential and non-essential workers in the United States. Methods: The COVID-19 Latino health cross-sectional survey was conducted and administered in person and virtually. Bivariate analyses and chi-square tests were performed to investigate the association between essential worker status and changes in food security status during the COVID-19 pandemic. All reported p-values were two-sided; p< 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: Of the 869 Hispanic/Latino respondents, 393 (45%) were deemed essential workers, and 476 (55%) were non-essential workers. About 22% of essential workers reported a household income of less than $20,000, whereas 19% of non-essential workers had an income above $100,000. Half (54%) of essential workers reported food insecurity. Over one-third (35%) of essential and 22% of non-essential workers reported increased food insecurity during the COVID-19 pandemic. Moreover, there was a significant difference in food insecurity status between essential and non-essential Hispanic/Latino workers (p< 0.001). Conclusion: The results underscore the prevalence of food insecurity due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the need to create comprehensive food policies that address the lack of availability of adequate food among Hispanic/Latino essential workers who already face pandemic-related challenges.