Health Reform and Communities of Color: How might it Affect Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities?

http://www.kff.org/healthreform/8016.cfm

The major bills now pending before Congress include a number of key provisions that could either directly or indirectly have an impact on reducing health disparities affecting racial and ethnic minorities.  Racial and ethnic minorities represent only one-third of the total U.S. population, but they comprise more than 50 percent of the nation’s uninsured.

This issue brief examines some of the key provisions of health reform legislation that are likely to have a significant impact on people of color and also highlights the specific provisions of the proposed legislation that focus on health disparities.  These provisions include efforts to expand access to health coverage through Medicaid expansions and health exchanges, as well as workforce development, expansions of community health centers and several specific disparities provision

Topics: Civic Life, Community Health, Cultural Competence, Health Care, Health Care Access, Immigrant Integration, Immigrants, Public Health