Credit: Nadege Nau/WNYC

Father Luis Garcia in front of St Rose of Lima Church.

Nearly 20 percent of the Garden State’s residents are Latino, and they represent about one-third of the state’s uninsured residents.

But Latinos account for only 7 percent of New Jersey residents who signed up for Obamacare during the first year of availability of subsidized medical insurances through the federal Affordable Care Act.

What’s the reason? Immigration issues are a major part of the problem, according to community leaders and outreach healthcare workers in Newark’s North Ward, which has a heavily Latino population.

Read and listen to reporter Kai Wright’s complete story on the website of WNYC/NJPR, a content partner of NJ Spotlight.