The U.S. Department of Health & Human Services provided new federal guidelines to determine financial eligibility for social service benefits for those living below the poverty line. These guidelines, though slightly different are comparable to those in 2007 in regards to household income. While most Hispanics have some sort of employment, the largest group of Mexicans and Latinos living below the federal poverty level in 2007 was the undocumented immigrants at 50 percent of their population, followed by green-card holders, naturalized citizens, and U.S.-born Mexicans. In comparison, in 2007 approximately five percent of U.S.-born whites were living at less than 100% of the federal poverty level. These patterns speak to the long-term influence of legal status on access to healthcare services.
