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.

The Gerontologist discusses perceptions of different groups about cognitive health

A new special issue of The Gerontologist has identified for the first time how ethnically, culturally, linguistically, and geographically diverse groups think about aging and brain health.

21 Aug 2009

Intracacies of doctors' fees difficult to unravel

"For the most part, doctor fees are a mystery. If people see a doctor who is part of their insurance network, they are responsible only for deductibles and co-payments, and the price the health insurer pays is often a secret," The New York Times reports. "And if people see a doctor outside their network, they usually have no idea what the charge will be - even though they are responsible for most of it - until the bill comes."

19 Aug 2009

Improving the health and well-being of U.S. lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender teens

Research indicates that the social stigma that surrounds lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) teens leads to a variety of health risks such as substance use, risky sexual behaviors, eating disorders, suicidal ideation, and victimization.

19 Aug 2009

Obama calls for veterans' health care expansion

President Obama Monday included health care in a speech at the Veterans of Foreign Wars' national convention Monday, The Arizona Republic reports.

19 Aug 2009

Florida’s health centers filling critical gaps

Since its establishment, National Health Center Week has celebrated the work of community health centers that provide health services to the working poor, the uninsured, the medically underserved, and many high risk and vulnerable populations. This year’s National Health Center Week takes place from August 9 – 15.

13 Aug 2009

African American groups call on health insurers to dismiss restrictive practices

To protect the health of African Americans in Maryland, the Black Nurses Association of Baltimore and the Greater Baltimore Urban League have joined together to support a National Health Insurer Code of Conduct from the American Medical Association.

13 Aug 2009

Britons getting irritated by health-reform rhetoric

U.S. health care reform efforts garner attention and reaction from around the globe especially from Britain.

13 Aug 2009

Building a comprehensive child vision care system

Even though universal comprehensive eye exams for children prior to starting school would result in more children being diagnosed and successfully treated for vision problems and eye diseases, requirements vary widely from state to state and only three states require eye examinations for school-age children, according to a new report from the National Commission on Vision and Health.

13 Aug 2009

Congressional Black Caucus keeps up efforts for reform

The Louisiana Weekly reports that the Congressional Black Caucus "has vowed to continue pushing for specific provisions that its members feel are vital for African Americans. ... The original House and Senate bills would significantly reduce the staggering number of uninsured Americans," which are disproportionately black, according to the news organization.

12 Aug 2009

Latinos wait for health care reform while illegal immigrants face care decisions

The health care needs of an estimated 6.8 million undocumented and uninsured immigrants "has become the third rail in the debate over health-care reform," The Chicago Tribune reports. Some health care advocates have proposed broadening the proposals before Congress to include this population, but "fierce opposition has kept the idea off the table."

12 Aug 2009

AHIP study finds large cost variations in medical care

A survey by America's Health Insurance Plans released Tuesday online finds large price variations common in medical care, according to the New York Times.

11 Aug 2009

Discovery of a potential target for metastatic cancer

The deadliest part of the cancer process, metastasis, appears to rely on help from macrophages, potent immune system cells that usually defend vigorously against disease, researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University report.

11 Aug 2009

Discovery of potential target for metastatic cancer

10 Aug 2009

France struggling to provide universal care while controlling high costs

Wall Street Journal: "France claims it long ago achieved much of what today's U.S. health-care overhaul is seeking: It covers everyone, and provides what supporters say is high-quality care. But soaring costs are pushing the system into crisis.

7 Aug 2009

Doctors create program to help providers adjust to rural work settings

group of doctors has created a post-doctorate program to provide rural communities with a pipeline of providers, The Iowa Independent reports.

7 Aug 2009

Reform could strain community health centers

While the health care reform debate rages on Capitol Hill, sitting just a mile away is the Walker-Jones Health Center in Northeast Washington, one of about 1,200 federally-qualified community health centers across the country that provide free and reduced-cost care to millions of Americans.

7 Aug 2009

Senators Harkin, Kennedy and Specter honored as champions of health research

The Foundation for the National Institutes of Health, Research!America and the Albert and Mary Lasker Foundation recognized these three senators for their continued support of research for health, their leadership and shared commitment to making it a high national priority, on Tuesday evening August 4th at the Russell Senate Office Building.

6 Aug 2009

Healthy choices to prevent cancer

In today's troubled economy, saving money is a hot topic. No matter what gets cut from your budget, however, experts at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center believe that healthy choices to prevent cancer shouldn't be on the list.

5 Aug 2009

University of Illinois at Chicago awarded $7.2 million to eliminate health disparities

The University of Illinois at Chicago has been awarded a $7.2 million federal grant to establish the UIC Center of Excellence in Eliminating Health Disparities.

4 Aug 2009

Women and minorities under-represented in trials

Enrollment demographics published in many U.S. vascular surgery randomized control trials (RCTs) under-represent women as well as race or ethnic minorities, according to a new study published in the Society for Vascular Surgery’s August 2009 issue of the Journal of Vascular Surgery.

4 Aug 2009