Disparity In Healthcare

Disparity In Healthcare

CDC (2020) defines health disparities as “a preventable difference in the burden of disease, injury, violence, or opportunities to achieve optimal health that are experienced by socially disadvantaged populations.” The two critical healthcare disparity areas I will focus on are socioeconomic status (SES) and race/ethnicity. SES and race/ethnicity are very closely linked to health disparities. SES encompasses income, educational level, occupation, and health outcomes. The people historically underserved in the US healthcare system are the minority groups (e.g., African American, Latino/Hispanic, Indigenous, and Asian American populations). According to the CDC, Non-Hispanic Black adults (49.6%) had the highest age-adjusted prevalence of obesity, followed by Hispanic adults (44.8%), non-Hispanic White adults (42.2%), and non-Hispanic Asian adults (17.4%) (CDC, 2021); Black, American Indian, and Alaska Native (AI/AN) women are two to three times more likely to die from pregnancy-related causes than white women (CDC, 2019). Christensen (2021) mentioned that Black people in rural areas are more reasonable than White people to die from diabetes and high blood pressure. In an article by Artiga et al. (2021), they stated that minority groups are more likely to be uninsured than white people. These data showed health disparities in minority groups. The key barriers to reducing health disparities in that relate to socioeconomic determinants prevalent among these at-risk populations include socioeconomic factors such as education, employment, living communities and conditions, and poverty; lifestyle behaviors such as exercise, alcohol intake, and tobacco use; and access to quality medical care (Kalinowski et al., 2019). Addressing socioeconomic determinants can reduce health disparities and impact overall health. Our assignment writing help is at affordable prices to students of all academic levels and academic disciplines.

Several economic policies have been established to address these critical social determinants that affect the poorer,at-risk communities and Americans suffering from socioeconomic issues at the federal and state levels. There are national policies such as the IRS Earned Income Tax Credit that provide tax credit or cash payment to low/moderate-income families; the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) Program addressing housing disparities; Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) addressing income disparities. Programs such as federally funded Head Start seeks to address education disparities at the childhood level.

I recommend improving access to critical services by having mobile clinics in low-access areas and translator for families. Another recommendation would be to enhance support for families before and after birth and improve the quality of care offered to minority groups. I would also recommend creating outreach programs to make minority groups aware of the benefits they qualify for. Some immigrants do not speak English nor know where to go for help. Those outreach programs should use census data to see who is in their communities. Based on those data, they can visit places where people have easy access or frequent regularly, such as libraries, churches, and food banks, to name a few. The outreach programs will provide them with healthcare services and reduce uncovered costs. When individuals have healthcare coverage, hospital visits are reduced. This is because preventative care can be sought instead of emergency care, saving time, money, and resources for the patient and the economy. Community health fundraising and funding need to be promoted in areas of population health because there cannot be a thriving economy without a healthy and prosperous population.

References

Adult obesity facts. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2021, September 30). Retrieved January 26, 2022, from https://www.cdc.gov/obesity/data/adult.html

Artiga, S., Hill , L., Orgera, K., & Damico, A. (2021, July 16). Health coverage by Race and ethnicity, 2010-2019. KFF. Retrieved January 26, 2022, from https://www.kff.org/racial-equity-and-health-policy/issue-brief/health-coverage-by-race- and-ethnicity/

Christensen, T. (2021, May). Black people in rural areas are likelier than white people to die from diabetes and high blood pressure. American Heart Association. Retrieved January 26, 2022, from https://www.heart.org/en/news/2021/05/20/black-people-in-rural-areas-more- likely-than-white-people-to-die-from-diabetes-high-blood-pressure

Health disparities. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2020, November 24). Retrieved January 27, 2022, from https://www.cdc.gov/healthyyouth/disparities/index.htm

Kalinowski, J., Taylor, J. Y., & Spruill, T. M. (2019). Why are young black women at high risk for cardiovascular disease? Circulation, 139(8), 1003–1004. https://doi.org/10.1161/circulationaha.118.037689

Racial and ethnic disparities continue in pregnancy-related deaths—Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2019, September 6). Retrieved January 26, 2022, from https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2019/p0905-racial-ethnic-disparities-pregnancy- deaths.html

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Using current research and scholarly information (within the last five years), identify and analyze at least two critical healthcare disparity areas. What economic policies do you think economic policies have impacted these disparities? What recommendation related to each difference would you make for an organization to plan for this to minimize the negative impact while still delivering quality care?

Disparity In Healthcare

Textbook: Health Economics and Policy, Chapter 14

Textbook link: https://bncvirtual.com/vb_econtent.php?ACTION=econtent&FVENCKEY=AD9EE8D798DCAFC7E76B5FB7C978DD86&j=43766531&sfmc_sub=1597096465&l=23329524_HTML&u=695880241&mid=524003857&jb=40753&utm_term=10242022&utm_source=transactional&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Direct_Ebooks

Website: https://www.ahrq.gov/research/findings/nhqrdr/index.html

Article: https://www.kff.org/racial-equity-and-health-policy/issue-brief/disparities-in-health-and-health-care-5-key-question-and-answers/

Video: https://www.khanacademy.org/test-prep/mcat/social-inequality/social-class/v/health-and-healthcare-disparities-in-the-us