United Healthcare Community Plan leaders discuss next steps for Hawaii health equity
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America’s Health Rankings released its 2021 Health Disparities Report, which provides nationwide and state-specific data on health disparities leading up to the pandemic. United Healthcare Community Plan (UHCP) Hawaii CEO David Heywood and Senior Medical Director Denise Leonardi, MD, discussed the report’s findings and how they will shape the agency’s future health care initiatives.
In Hawaii, the report found a 19 percent decrease in adults smoking, a 21 percent decrease in Asians and Pacific Islander populations with less than a high school education, and a 36 percent decrease in Hispanic adults avoiding care due to cost.
Minority Mental Health Research Program
Mental health disparities remain a persistent public health issue in the United States, particularly for underserved populations such as racial and ethnic minorities, sexual and gender minorities, individuals from lower socioeconomic strata, or those residing in rural or frontier geographic areas. The NIMH Strategic Plan for Research highlights the reduction of disparities and the promotion of mental health equity as a priority, through emphasis on research that addresses the needs of underserved and underrepresented populations. The 2018 National Healthcare Quality & Disparities Report suggested that while some disparities have gotten smaller, several disparities persist, especially for low socioeconomic and uninsured populations; and that for racial and ethnic minorities, disparities remain worse in key quality measures. A growing evidence base points to opportunities for bringing to scale successful interventions that increase quality and
NIH aims to address COVID testing disparities in underserved communities
NIH aims to address COVID testing disparities in underserved communities
Kelsy Ketchum, 360Dx
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Not long after the start of COVID-19 pandemic, communities of color as well as underserved communities, in general, complained about their lack of access to testing.
More than a year later, some diagnostic companies say they are seeing a decline in COVID-19 testing as more tests are being made available. Yet for those in neighborhoods where access to tests were limited, challenges to getting a SARS-CoV-2 test remains.
To try to address this, the U.S. National Institutes of Health s Rapid Acceleration of Diagnostics Underserved Populations (RADx-UP) initiative has provided funding for projects that aim to implement ways to widen access to testing and fill in healthcare gaps for these communities.
MedCity News
Confronting disparities in access to healthcare for underserved populations in 2021
Particularly at the point of care, we have the means and resources to directly inform, educate and offer service to those who have been marginalized across multiple demographic intersections of race, ethnicity and income.
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The global coronavirus pandemic is only the latest in decades of healthcare devastation for BIPOC communities: more illness, less care, more death. Many illnesses disproportionately affect certain populations due to disparities in healthcare access, but the pandemic helped shine a light on racism as a public health issue that needs to be broadly addressed. In 2021 and beyond, our government and health systems will need to make major shifts to address health inequality among ethnic groups, minorities and low-income populations.
Addressing Systemic Racism Through Clinical Preventive Service Recommendations From the US Preventive Services Task Force | Guidelines | JAMA jamanetwork.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from jamanetwork.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.