Doctors in Nogales, AZ

Sixty percent of the people who cross the border at Nogales on any given day are walking to a medical appointment. Some are heading south to Nogales, Sonora, for dental work at a third of U.S. prices or prescription refills from Mexican pharmacies. Others are heading north, seeking specialty care unavailable on the Sonora side. This two-way healthcare traffic defines Nogales more than any other city in Arizona. With a population of roughly 20,000 and a metro area including Rio Rico and Tubac that pushes past 30,000, the city funnels $30 billion in annual cross-border trade and serves as the state's largest land port of entry. Carondelet Holy Cross Hospital is the only hospital in all of Santa Cruz County: 25 acute-care beds, 10 bassinets, and a 31-bed long-term care unit, operated by Ascension Health. Services include 24-hour emergency care, general surgery, labor and delivery (recognized as a Blue Distinction Center for Maternity Care), mammography, ultrasound, rehabilitation, and hospice. A bi-national clinical rotation program trains physicians who practice on both sides of the border, and a dedicated border health and diabetes program addresses the county's disproportionate chronic disease burden. For anything beyond Holy Cross's capacity, oncology, advanced cardiology, neurosurgery, the drive is 63 miles north to Tucson. Mariposa Community Health Center is the safety net. Founded in 1980, it is the largest FQHC in southeastern Arizona, operating locations in Nogales, Rio Rico, Tubac, and Patagonia. Services span adult medicine, pediatrics, OB-GYN, dentistry, behavioral health, and two full-service pharmacies, all on a sliding fee scale. Nearly every provider and staff member is bilingual in English and Spanish, which matters in a community where 83% of residents identify as Hispanic or Latino and 44% were born outside the United States. The median household income in Nogales is $40,745, the poverty rate in Santa Cruz County runs at 23%, and roughly 20% of residents under 65 have no health insurance at all.