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Eliminate Health Disparities

While high costs and varying quality of care affect all of us, they disproportionately impact people of color, non-English speaking residents, and low-income communities - creating racial and ethnic health disparities. For instance, the life expectancy for African-Americans is 73.3 years, five years shorter than it is for whites. Insured and uninsured people of color are more likely than whites to receive sub-par care, experience worse health outcomes, and are less likely to receive routine or necessary care.

The causes of health disparities are complex, systemic, and reflect the racial, class, and ethnic tensions that have for so long shaped American society and culture. States are taking a leading role in working to eliminate health disparities, as the Opportunity Agenda and Families USA detail in Identifying and Evaluating Equity Provisions in State Health Care Reform. While more needs to be done, the growing awareness of health disparities will help result in greater adoption of many key policy options described below.

While increased access to coverage will help all state residents, this is not enough to address the cultural, geographic, and institutional barriers to quality health care faced by people of color and low-income communities. Reform must improve the cultural competency of providers, support the health care infrastructure and safety net, improve coordination among state and local health agencies, and create long-term planning so that quality and affordable health care is provided to all US residents regardless of personal characteristics and circumstances.

How States Fare Under Obama’s Health Reform Blueprint

Feb 25, 2010

This week, President Obama released his blueprint for comprehensive health care legislation. The plan 's release means Obama can outline the specifics of what he wants to see in a final bill for the first time. Many political observers see the decision to outline specifics as not only a jump start to move health care reform across the finish line but also as a stamp of approval for the Senate to use a majority vote through the reconciliation process, a strategy which appears to be gaining momentum.

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Maine Victory on Medical Marijuana Use Comes as Feds Decide Not to Use Prosecutions to Frustrate Local Laws

Nov 05, 2009

Maine's voters approved a measure by a margin of 59% to 41% to make it the fifth state to allow retail pot dispensaries, expanding its existing ten year-old medical marijuana law. Maine now joins California, Colorado, New Mexico and Rhode Island which allow for places where medical marijuana patients can legally buy pot. Unlike California's more free-wheeling system, Maine law will require that dispensaries be licensed by the state and more narrowly defines medical conditions for which patients can be prescribed pot.
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Extending Coverage by Keeping Youth on their Parents Health Care Plan

Jul 16, 2009

Young adults between the ages of 19 and 29 represent one of the largest and fastest-growing segments ofthe U.S. population without health care coverage. In an effort toensure that all Americans are insured a growing number of states have enacted legislation to allow children to stay on their parents' health insurance plans well into adulthood.
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Addressing Health Inequality with the Economic Recovery Package

Apr 09, 2009

Stimulus funding, like $2.1 billion for Head Start and Early Head Start Programs, $1.5 billion for health center improvements, and $8.4 billion for public transit, should be implemented with a clear intent of reducing racial and ethnic health disparities and achieving equitable resource distribution across communities.
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