RT Book, Section
A1 Betancourt, Joseph R.
A1 Green, Alexander R.
A2 Jameson, J. Larry
A2 Fauci, Anthony S.
A2 Kasper, Dennis L.
A2 Hauser, Stephen L.
A2 Longo, Dan L.
A2 Loscalzo, Joseph
SR Print(0)
ID 1155941056
T1 Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Health Care
T2 Harrison's Principles of Internal Medicine, 20e
YR 2018
FD 2018
PB McGraw-Hill Education
PP New York, NY
SN 9781259644016
LK accesspharmacy.mhmedical.com/content.aspx?aid=1155941056
RD 2024/04/19
AB Over  the  course  of  its  history,  the  United  States  has  experienced  dramatic  improvements  in  overall  health  and  life  expectancy,  largely  as  a  result  of  initiatives  in  public  health,  health  promotion,  disease  prevention,  and  chronic  care  management.  Our  ability  to  prevent,  detect,  and  treat  diseases  in  their  early  stages  has  allowed  us  to  target  and  reduce  rates  of  morbidity  and  mortality.  Despite  interventions  that  have  improved  the  overall  health  of  the  majority  of  Americans,  racial  and  ethnic  minorities  (blacks,  Hispanics/Latinos,  Native  Americans/Alaskan  Natives,  Asian/Pacific  Islanders)  have  benefited  less  from  these  advances  than  whites  and  have  suffered  poorer  health  outcomes  from  many  major  diseases,  including  cardiovascular  disease,  cancer,  and  diabetes.  These  disparities  highlight  the  importance  of  recognizing  and  addressing  the  social  determinants  of  health,  which  contribute  enormously  to  health  outcomes.  Research  has  revealed  that  minorities  may  receive  less  care  and  lower-quality  care  than  whites,  even  when  confounders  such  as  stage  of  presentation,  comorbidities,  and  health  insurance  are  controlled.  These  differences  in  quality  are  called  racial  and  ethnic  disparities  in  health  care.  These  health  care  disparities  have  taken  on  greater  importance  with  the  significant  transformation  of  the  U.S.  health  care  system  and  value-based  purchasing.  The  shift  toward  creating  financial  incentives  and  disincentives  to  achieve  quality  goals  makes  focusing  on  those  who  receive  lower-quality  care  more  important  than  ever  before.  This  chapter  will  provide  an  overview  of  racial  and  ethnic  disparities  in  health  and  health  care,  identify  root  causes,  and  provide  key  recommendations  to  address  these  disparities  at  both  the  clinical  and  health  system  levels.