http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/medicalnews.php?newsid=12576#

Health Disparities Experienced by Racial Ethnic Minority Populations USA
27 Aug 2004

In the United States, blacks, Hispanics, American Indians/Alaska Natives,
Asians, and Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islanders (NHOPIs) bear a
disproportionate burden of disease, injury, premature death, and
disability. For persons of these racial/ethnic minority populations, health
disparities can mean lower life expectancy, decreased quality of life, loss
of economic opportunities, and perceptions of injustice.

For society, these disparities translate into decreased productivity,
increased health-care costs, and social inequity. By 2050, racial/ethnic
minorities will account for nearly 50% of the total U.S. population. If
these populations continue to experience poor health status, the expected
demographic changes will magnify the adverse impact of such disparities on
public health in the United States.

Since 1985, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has
coordinated several initiatives to reduce or eliminate racial/ethnic health
disparities, such as the Executive Order on Increasing Participation of
Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in Federal Programs. Information
about these initiatives is available at
http://www.omhrc.gov/omh/sidebar/aboutomh.htm. Ongoing public awareness
campaigns include Closing the Health Gap and Take a Loved One to the Doctor
Day.

Despite recent progress, racial/ethnic disparities persist among the 10
leading health indicators identified in the 2010 national health
objectives. Socioeconomic factors (e.g., education, employment, and
poverty), lifestyle behaviors (e.g., physical activity, alcohol intake, and
tobacco use), social environment (e.g., educational and economic
opportunities and neighborhood and work conditions), and access to clinical
preventive services (e.g., cancer screening and vaccination) contribute to
racial/ethnic health disparities.

Level of education has been correlated with the prevalence of certain
health risks (e.g., obesity, lack of physical activity, and cigarette
smoking). In addition, recent immigration might increase risks for chronic
disease and injury among certain populations. Although some immigrants are
highly educated and have high incomes, lack of familiarity with the U.S.
health-care system, different cultural attitudes about the use of
traditional and conventional medicine, and lack of fluency in English can
pose barriers to obtaining appropriate health care.

The elimination of racial/ethnic disparities in health status also will
require important changes in the ways health care is delivered and
financed. Unequal access to care and unequal treatment of persons who
receive care are key determinants of racial/ethnic disparities in health
care and health status.

Beginning with this week's issue, MMWR will publish a series underscoring
health disparities for certain racial/ethnic populations. The reports in
this MMWR issue describe levels of physical activity among Asians and
NHOPIs in the United States and highlight how community-based surveys of
Asian subpopulations and NHOPIs reveal important differences in health
status and access to health-care services. These findings can help guide
ongoing efforts to reduce or eliminate such disparities.

Use of trade names and commercial sources is for identification only and
does not imply endorsement by the U.S. Department of Health and Human
Services.

References to non-CDC sites on the Internet are provided as a service to
MMWR readers and do not constitute or imply endorsement of these
organizations or their programs by CDC or the U.S. Department of Health and
Human Services. CDC is not responsible for the content of pages found at
these sites. URL addresses listed in MMWR were current as of the date of
publication.
Disclaimer All MMWR HTML versions of articles are electronic conversions
from ASCII text into HTML. This conversion may have resulted in character
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this HTML document, but are referred to the electronic PDF version and/or
the original MMWR paper copy for the official text, figures, and tables. An
original paper copy of this issue can be obtained from the Superintendent
of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office (GPO), Washington, DC
20402-9371; telephone: (202) 512-1800. Contact GPO for current prices.

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