Health Disparities:

The Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies Health Policy Institute (HPI) is conducting research and policy analysis to address racial and ethnic disparities in childhood obesity. In a new fact sheet, Research and Policy Analysis to Address Childhood Obesity, HPI describes their work identifying the root causes of these disparities and identifying evidence-based policy strategies to address them. (March 2010)
Families USA's Improving Language Access: CHIPRA Provides Increased Funding for Language Services discusses the increased funding for language assistance services (interpretation and translation) and how states cover these services for Medicaid and CHIP enrollees who are limited English proficient, or LEP. (February 2010)
The Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies Health Policy Institute, in partnership with the Drexel University School of Public Health Center for Health Equality and Health Management Associates, has examined the major health reform bills in the 111th Congress to assess how they address racial and ethnic health and health care inequities. Click here for the latest analysis. (October 2009)
The Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies Health Policy Institute hosted a breakfast briefing to discuss the implications of health reform legislation for racial and ethnic minorities, and released a preliminary analysis of the economic benefits of addressing health disparities. To view a webcast of the briefing, click here. (September 2009)

So You Think You Know Minority Health? is a new interactive game from Families USA's Minority Health Initiative. Based on the classic Jeopardy game, it is designed to test your knowledge of the health disparities facing people of color in America today. Check it out.

Comparative Effectiveness Research: A Potential Tool for Reducing Health Care Disparities counters misinformation about comparative effectiveness research and outlines steps to take to make it more useful in the fight against health care disparities. (August 2009)
Reducing Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities: Key Health Equity Provisions examines several measures in the health reform proposals that are before Congress that will address inequities in the health care system. (August 2009)
In the first videocast of a monthly Health Disparities Seminar Series, the National Center on Minority Health and Health Disparities featured Dr. Brian Smedley of the Joint Center Health Policy Institute. In Moving Science to Practice and Policy: Addressing Inequities through a Focus on Place, Dr. Smedley discusses the negative effects of racial and socioeconomic segregation on health. He also highlights the challenges and opportunities involved in applying research to policies and practices that address health inequities and improve health opportunities. (July 2009)
Families USA’s The Children's Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act (CHIPRA): Addressing Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities examines four key provisions in the new law: investing in outreach, increasing access for legal immigrant children and pregnant women, increased funding for interpretation and translation services, and establishing new quality of care measures. It also includes action steps for advocates. (June 2009)
Racial and economic segregation set the stage for health inequities. Maps can be used to show why and how investments in communities—or lack of investment—shape health. In User Guide: Using Maps to Promote Health Equity, the Joint Center Health Policy Institute and the Opportunity Agenda partner to demonstrate the power of mapping tools and provide recommendations to advance the field. (June 2009)
The Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies Health Policy Institute has produced a series of briefs that examine specific child health indicators among African American, Hispanic, and white children. Trends in Child Health 1997-2006: Assessing Black-White Disparities and Trends in Child Health 1997-2006: Assessing Hispanic-White Disparities examine factors that can influence health and quality of life through childhood and into adulthood. (January 2009)
In the article Blacks Still Face Disparities in Healthcare, Joint Center Fair Health Journalism Fellow Kenneth Cooper provides a historical context for the Offices of Minority health that have been established across the nation. He also discusses the importance of building a business case for reducing disparities. (Winter 2008)
Families USA’s Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act of 2008: Addressing Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities discusses how the Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act (MIPPA) addresses health disparities within the Medicare population. MIPPA provisions to address these issues include: improved data collection for measuring and evaluating health disparities, outreach to the previously uninsured, and compliance with cultural competency standards. (November 2008) )
In the “Boston Globe” article How Racism Hurts—Literally, Madeleine Drexler, a Joint Center Fair Health Journalism Fellow, discusses the effects of racial discrimination on physical health. (July 2007)
In "The American Prospect" article Health in Black and White, Madeleine Drexler, a Joint Center Fair Health Fellow, interviews sociologist David Williams about racial and socioeconomic disparities in health. (April 2007)
Study of Racial Disparities in Healthcare Is Flawed, Says NMA responds to a study released in the New England Journal of Medicine in which researchers claim that disparities in health care are insignificant compared to the overall low quality of care received by all patients. The NMA's response to the study cites the extensive body of literature that documents the pervasiveness of health care disparities. (March 2006)
Racism in Medicine and Health Parity for African Americans: “The Slave Health Deficit” from the NMA’s Commission on Health Disparities examines the problem of unequal health status among African Americans. The report identifies some of the barriers to health parity and recommends corrective policy and culturally focused intervention strategies that can be adopted by the National Medical Association, its physician members, the communities they serve, and the nation as a whole. (2002)

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