Health Disparities News and Research

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Health disparities (also called healthcare inequality in some countries) refer to gaps in the quality of health and health care across racial, ethnic, sexual orientation and socioeconomic groups.

Recruiting more Hispanics to cancer clinical trials crucial to reducing health disparities

Hispanics are the fastest-growing demographic group in the United States, and they suffer from major health disparities, including higher rates of cancers of the cervix, stomach and liver.

20 May 2014

University of New Mexico scientist wins prestigious C-Change Comprehensive Cancer Control Champion Award

University of New Mexico Cancer Center scientist Barbara Damron, RN, PhD, FAAN, recently won the prestigious C-Change Comprehensive Cancer Control Champion Award.

19 May 2014

Albert Einstein College of Medicine hosts second Stem Cell Symposium focusing on cancer stem cells

Healthy stem cells work to restore or repair the body's tissues, but cancer stem cells have a more nefarious mission: to spawn malignant tumors. Cancer stem cells were discovered a decade ago, but their origins and identity remain largely unknown.

14 May 2014

'Face of campaign' initially unable to get coverage

It took a reporter's intervention to obtain coverage for a Chicago resident who had touted the law's benefits at a news conference last year but who had been mired in computer and other problems. Other reports look at how free preventive services may reduce health disparities and whether insurers can charge higher premiums to those who smoke e-cigarettes.

9 May 2014

State highlights: SEIU, hospital strike deal in Calif.; N.Y. Medicaid audit; dental therapists

A selection of health policy stories from California, New York, Connecticut, Georgia, Indiana and North Carolina.

8 May 2014

First Edition: May 7, 2014

Today's headlines include a story noting that insurers say about 80 percent of new enrollees have paid their first premiums for new insurance coverage under the health law.

7 May 2014

Higher calcium intake appears to mitigate impact of some of the risk genes for type 2 diabetes

Study shows calcium intake mitigates genetic risk for increased body fat in African-American children, a population with historically low calcium intake and high risk for diabetes.

29 Apr 2014

Research roundup: Structural concerns in ACOs; public's view of mandated contraception coverage

The Medicare Accountable Care Organization (ACO) programs reward participating health care provider groups that achieve slower spending growth and high quality of care.

26 Apr 2014

State highlights: Ohio hospital merger struck down; Okla. abortion drug use limited; Calif. exchange and felons

A federal appeals court on Tuesday ordered a major health system in northwest Ohio to unwind its merger with a local hospital on antitrust grounds. The unanimous decision by a three-judge panel of the Sixth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati comes amid growing concerns about hospital mergers and their effect on prices against the backdrop of America's health care upheaval (Gershman, 4/22).

25 Apr 2014

Evidence-based interventions provide promising strategies for reducing racial, ethnic health disparities

Evidence-based interventions at the local and national levels provide promising strategies for reducing racial and ethnic health disparities related to HIV infection rates, immunization coverage, motor vehicle injuries and deaths, and smoking, according to a new report by the CDC's Office of Minority Health and Health Equity.

21 Apr 2014

Study indicates that culture or genetics could be blamed for obesity disparities in women

Racial disparities in obesity rates among the third of U.S. adults considered obese are often blamed on socioeconomic status because of its influence on diet and physical activity, but new findings from the University of Alabama at Birmingham published in Obesity suggest otherwise — particularly for women.

17 Apr 2014

Study analyzes data to assess health disparities of transgender individuals

Transgender individuals are medically underserved and their healthcare needs incompletely understood in part because they represent a subpopulation whose health is rarely monitored by U.S. national surveillance systems.

16 Apr 2014

Depression linked to poor self-management in patients with diabetes

Adult patients with diabetes who trust their medical provider and feel included in treatment decisions are significantly more likely to take and maintain a newly prescribed antidepressant medication, according to a new study in the Journal of General Internal Medicine.

9 Apr 2014

UIC receives grant to improve wellness and preventive care for adults with developmental disabilities

The University of Illinois at Chicago has received a five-year, $4.4 million federal grant to find ways to improve wellness and preventive care for adults with developmental disabilities.

8 Apr 2014

New analysis finds less research attention is given to diseases of developing world

Death is not distributed equally around the world. In high-income countries, people typically die in old age of chronic diseases such as cancer or cardiovascular problems. In low-income countries, death comes primarily from infectious and perinatal diseases, and strikes at a young age.

7 Apr 2014

$Higher education level linked with decreased fracture incidence among non-white women$

Higher education level linked with decreased fracture incidence among non-white women

If you are a middle-aged African-American or Asian woman, your social class may play a significant role in how likely you are to suffer bone fractures, a UCLA-led study suggests.

7 Apr 2014

Mobile phones with tobacco screening guidelines offer cessation counseling

Smartphones and tablets may hold the key to getting more clinicians to screen patients for tobacco use and advise smokers on how to quit. Even though tobacco use is the leading cause of preventable disease and death in the U.S., clinicians often don't ask about smoking during patient exams.

1 Apr 2014

Diabetic Ketoacidosis is disproportionately high among youth

Diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA), a life-threatening but preventable condition, remains an important problem for youth with diabetes and their families. Diabetic ketoacidosis is due to a severe lack of insulin and it is often the presenting symptom of type 1 diabetes. It can also be present at the onset of type 2 diabetes.

31 Mar 2014

Einstein faculty members present recent research at AACR Annual Meeting

From uncovering the role nerve cells play in metastasis to identifying new cancer-causing genes, researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University made notable advances in the understanding and potential treatment of cancer during the past year.

29 Mar 2014

Study highlights importance of stress management, healthy lifestyle habits for people with migraine

Migraine sufferers who experienced reduced stress from one day to the next are at significantly increased risk of migraine onset on the subsequent day, according to a new study conducted by researchers at the Montefiore Headache Center and Albert Einstein College of Medicine at Yeshiva University.

27 Mar 2014