HPI News

A call to action on health disparities

June 8, 2010     Baltimore Sun

Most parents would be dismayed to see their child come home with a "D" on their report card. They would want to know how they and the school can work together to improve the child's scholastic performance.

With the announcement that the Baltimore City Health Department has given the very same grade to the city's efforts to reduce health inequities, will residents demand accountability, involvement and improvement?

PRESS RELEASE: Joint Center Commends Baltimore City Health Department’s Release of Health Disparities Report Card

The "2010 Baltimore City Health Disparities Report Card" released today by the Baltimore City Health Department represents a groundbreaking approach to comprehensively monitor health disparities in the city, according to the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies, a research and policy institution that focuses on the concerns of people of color.  

The report is intended to serve as a one-stop source for assessing major health indicators and identifying gaps among demographic groups, while also offering guidance in planning strategic policy, systems, and behavioral interventions aimed at eliminating health disparities in the City of Baltimore.

Joint Center Commission Report Says More Research, Policy Changes Needed to Boost Involvement of Expectant Fathers in Pregnancy

WASHINGTON - A report by a commission of public health experts has issued a set of policy and research recommendations aimed at supporting and enhancing the role that expectant fathers can play in ensuring healthy pregnancies and infants.

Among the many recommendations released today by the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies' Commission on Paternal Involvement in Pregnancy Outcomes are reducing the marriage penalty on the Earned Income Tax Credit, amending the Family and Medical Leave Act to include paid time off for new fathers, and making changes in the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program to encourage and support paternal involvement.

Facing the New, Multiple Epidemics of HIV and AIDS: Are Federal Resources Going Where They’re Needed Most?

May 5, 2010     NNPA

By Allen A. Herman, M.D., Ph.D. , Winifred Carson-Smith, Esq.

By now it is well-established that the toll of HIV/AIDS has been disproportionately experienced by communities of color. But has the federal government been responsive to the needs of these communities? Our research on the topic-commissioned by the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies, a Washington, D.C. think tank focused on addressing the needs of communities of color-finds that the answer is no.

In the Wake of Health Reform: What’s Next to Achieve Health Equity?

April 2, 2010     NNPA

The dramatic passage of health care reform legislation was an important boost for the Obama Administration and an historic turning point in the effort to repair the deeply broken U.S. health-care system. But will the legislation be enough to address the needs of those who face the greatest barriers to good health-particularly people of color, who are the fastest-growing segment of the U.S. population?

Initiative to focus on equity among local residents

March 31, 2010     Kalamazoo Gazette

Western Michigan University and Kalamazoo College are launching a discussion series that will focus on ways to create equity among residents in the areas of health, education and economics.

Health disparity by race, residency and other factors is the first topic in the series, which is called "Kalamazoo Matters" and begins Thursday with a breakfast meeting of community leaders followed by a public presentation at WMU's Fetzer Center.

Early Diagnoses of the New Law

March 29, 2010     New York Times

Love it or hate it, the health care overhaul is the most significant piece of domestic legislation to emerge from Washington in decades. The new law is also ferociously complex: the original Senate bill, which served as the blueprint for most of the changes, ran well over 2,000 pages. So what is buried in those pages? Here are some thoughts from health care experts on what the changes will mean for Americans, sick and well alike...

PRESS RELEASE: Joint Center's Everett Applauds House Health Reform Vote

March 22, 2010

The health care reform legislation passed by the United States House of Representatives yesterday is an historic measure that will move the nation in the direction of eliminating longstanding racial and ethnic disparities.  As its provisions take effect, the new law will improve the state of health care for people of color by covering the uninsured and widening coverage for individuals with pre-existing conditions.  In addition, health care providers will now be incentivized to work in medically underserved communities.  These and other provisions together will bring significant improvements in health outcomes for people of color, who as a group face greater barriers to high-quality care than the population at large.

Blacks and Latinos Not Out of the Woods Yet on Health Care

March 22, 2010     New America Media

Moments after House passage of the landmark health care reform bill, Republican National Committee Chair Michael Steele and House Republican Minority Leader John Boehner loudly sounded the war drums. Both pointed out three obvious and ominous facts. The bill passed by the narrowest of narrow margins. Americans are as deeply divided as ever on health care reform, or even whether there should be health care reform. The third point both made is the most ominous. They vowed to fight hard to repeal the law. They bank on a swell of public anger to punish the Democrats by plunging their numbers in the House and Senate in the November mid-term elections.

PRESS RELEASE: Joint Center Receives $3.6 Million Grant from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation

March 1, 2010

WASHINGTON, DC -- The Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies, a Washington-based research and policy institution that focuses on the concerns of African Americans and other people of color, has received a three-year, $3.6 million grant to fund its economic research and the work of its Health Policy Institute (HPI).

Experts Identify Why Women and African Americans Face a Greater Risk of Dying From Heart Disease Than White Men

PR Newswire     February 16, 2010

The Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions (SCAI) today announced an educational event for the public highlighting the gender and racial disparities in the prevention and treatment of cardiovascular disease. The "Know What Counts" educational program titled, "The Path to Health Care Equity: Identifying and Solving Racial, Ethnic, and Gender Disparities in Health Care in the New Century," will feature a distinguished physician panel, along with a keynote address by U.S. Senator Ben Cardin. The event, which is co-sponsored by the Association of Black Cardiologists, Mended Hearts, and WomenHeart: The National Coalition for Women with Heart Disease, will be held Tuesday, March 2, from noon to 3 p.m. at the U.S. House of Representatives inWashington, D.C.

Blacks Less Likely to Survive Cancer Than Whites in Large N.J. Study

Health Behavior News Service     February 2, 2010

A New Jersey study found that African-Americans with cancer are less likely to survive it than whites, and residents of poor neighborhoods less likely to survive than are those in wealthier areas of the state.

The racial disadvantage diminishes when socioeconomic status is a consideration, but does not disappear, according to the study in the February issue of the Journal of Health Care for the Poor and Underserved.