Healthcare Disparity In The United States

A healthcare disparity is a limitation of healthcare availability, usually among a certain racial or socioeconomic demographic (Black, 2013). However, there are disparities that don’t have a specific demographic and affect the entirety of the United States, which are potentially most detrimental to the overall health of our country. One of those disparities is health literacy, or the exchange of complex information from the healthcare provider to the patient or client (Black, 2013). The lack of health literacy in America poses as a problem, especially with the chronically ill. Without proper knowledge of how to treat their illness and what to do when the disease process worsens or ameliorates can potentially cause millions of unnecessary hospitalizations,

In 1964 Congress passed the Civil Rights Act in which Title VI specifically forbade the distribution of federal funds to organizations that practiced discrimination. Enforcement of Title VI was a major priority within the Johnson administration as they implemented the Medicare program (Reynolds, 1997). Despite a mandate of equal treatment, significant patterns of segregated health care utilization have remained to the present. In an analysis of Medicare beneficiaries, Bach and colleagues found that their was a small proportion of physicians – 22% - who provided the majority of visits - 80% - by black patients (Bach, Pham, Schrag, Tate, & Hargraves, 2004). This may represent a pattern of racial concordance, patients choosing providers of their own race, but the physicians seeing the majority of black patients did not the same resources available as those seeing the majority of white patients. Compared with physicians seeing the mostly white patients, physicians seeing mostly black patients were 33% less likely to report always having access to high quality specialists, and 40% less likely to report always having access to high quality diagnostic imaging. In short, black patients are using a different health system than white patients on average and the health system black patients are using has fewer resources (Bach, et al., 2004).

Many factors contribute to differing racial and ethnic health needs, including culture norms, religious mandates, and health disparities. The health disparities refers to specific differences in disease incidence, health outcomes, quality of health care and access to health care services that exist across racial and ethnic groups (Mandal, 2014). Disparities may result from inadequate access to care, poor quality of care, cultural issues and social determinants.

Although the United States is a leader in healthcare innovation and spends more money on health care than any other industrialized nation, not all people in the United State benefit equally from this progress as a health care disparity exists between racial and ethnic minorities and white Americans. Health care disparity is defined as “a particular type of health difference that is closely linked with social or economic disadvantage…adversely affecting groups of people who have systematically experienced greater social and/or economic obstacles to health and/or clean environment based on their racial or ethnic group; religion; socioeconomic status; gender; age; mental health; cognitive, sensory or physical disability; sexual orientation or gender identity; geographic location; or other characteristics historically linked to discrimination or exclusion” (National Partnership for Action to End Health Disparities [NPAEHD], 2011, p. 3). Overwhelming evidence shows that racial and ethnic minorities receive inferior quality health care compared to white Americans, and multiple factors contribute to these disparities, including geography, lack of access to adequate health coverage, communication difficulties between patients and providers, cultural barriers, and lack of access to providers (American College of Physicians,

Healthcare disparities within racial minority groups are an ongoing issue in the United States. Factors that affect these disparities are overall quality of care, access to healthcare, and access to insurance. Numerous efforts have been made to decrease the access and quality of care for minorities. The current intervention being used is the Affordable Care Act (ACA). This act was initiated by President Obama in 2010 and has had much controversy in the past years. The main arguments are the ACA increasing the taxes for Americans and the fact that all Americans must obtain insurance if proper funds are available. In 2014 the ACA Medicaid expanded and each state had the opportunity to expand if the state believed it appropriate. Out of the 50

According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), “health equity is achieved when every person has the opportunity to attain his or her full health potential and no one is disadvantaged from achieving this potential because of social position or other socially determined circumstances” (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2015). Satcher (2010) reports that health inequities are “systematic, avoidable, and unjust” disparities (p. 6). He also states that the World Health Organization (WHO) concluded that social conditions are the most important determinant of a person’s health. Social conditions “determine access to health services and influence lifestyle choices” (Satcher, 2010, p. 6). These determinants must be addressed in order to reduce health inequity. Inequity can be

Healthcare disparities have been an issue all over the world for a very long time. The purpose of this paper is to give you knowledge on disparities within the health care environment. This paper will discuss the definition of disparities, types of disparities, reasons for disparities, statistical data from trends and reports, and information on disparities elimination and improvements.

One of the major obstacles for researchers in the field of Health Psychology and Aging is understanding the role of health disparities across different populations. Health disparities can be understood in terms of differences in some facet of health and well-being across different groups of people. The issue of health disparities across different populations is one that must be understood not only in the context of genetic and biological factors, but also in the context of a broader sociocultural perspective. The influence of health disparities are implied in the context of aging, but are discussed across the entire lifespan. The existence of health disparities in later life is often a product of a lifelong experience and life-course trajectory. This essay will address some of the major

Health care reform has been a “hot” topic for decades now. In 2010, Obama signed into law, the Affordable Care Act (ACA) or more commonly known as Obamacare. In short, the goal was to provide more Americans with affordable quality health insurance and decrease the cost of health care spending. Everyone is guaranteed (required) health insurance or pay a penalty.

The United States is faced with multiple health disparities within the country that encompass many challenges for individuals when it comes to the fairness and access to health care. A health disparity is defined as the inconsistency of treatment between two different groups of individuals. Treatment that could be different could be seen as different care due to age, race, ethnicity, culture, or current socioeconomic status (Koh et al., 2012). Treatment may be different or delivered in different ways between literacy component individuals and illiterate individuals and be viewed as unequal care. Healthcare facilities must be cautious when providing care and be cautious of the health disparities that exist in order to provide equal and

The research on health disparities across the United States is still relatively new. For many within the medical field there are still many who focus on issues of disparities without addressing the structural issues at the base of those disparities. When it comes to interventions to address these disparities and inequalities, research is focused on the role of medical professionals with little research on community engagement and empowerment.

The United States is faced with multiple health disparities within the country that encompass many challenges for individuals when it comes to the fairness and access to health care. A health disparity is defined as the inconsistency of treatment between two different groups of individuals. Treatment that could be different could be seen as different care due to age, race, ethnicity, culture, or current socioeconomic status (Koh et al., 2012). Treatment may be harmful for individuals as a result of miscommunication that may be perceived the wrong way. Individuals with low health literacy do not understand the purpose of particular drugs or the name of one’s condition, which can further leave an individual vulnerable to harm. Individuals may sign consent they do not fully understand, and will receive unwanted care and procedures (Clark, 2011). Healthcare providers need to be aware of an individual’s level of understanding before harming the individual with irreversible procedures.

Minority health disparities continue to be a pervasive problem within the United States.The Institute of Medicine defines disparity as, “differences in treatment provided to members of different racial or ethnic groups that are not justified by underlying health conditions or preferences” (Snowden 526). Despite adjustments made to access-related factors, insurance and income, minorities still tend receive lower-quality health care than whites (Flores, Olsen and Tomany-Korman 183). According to the Centers for Disease Control, “Relatively little progress has been made toward the goal of eliminating racial/ethnic disparities” (Gronman and Ginsburg 226). In this paper, I will describe the different health disparities that racial, ethnic and sexual minorities experience throughout their lives. I will then discuss the policies health care providers and government entities have put in place in order to eliminate the disparities between minorities and whites.

Race/ethnicity, gender, and socioeconomic position are social determinants that lead to disparities in healthcare. Despite declining death rates, African Americans have consistently had higher mortality rates than Whites. For example, breast cancer is more prevalent in whites however the incidence of mortality from breast cancer is higher in black women. Black women are also likely to have more advanced cancer at the time of diagnosis than their White peers. Williams (2002) proposes that racial categories are more alike than different in terms of biological characteristics and genetics. Furthermore, they do not capture patterns of genetic variation. Thus, it is not biologically reasonable for genetic differences alone to play a major role

The status of disparities in 2016 is that many groups face substantial disparities in access to utilizations of care. Minorities face more access barriers and utilize less care then Caucasian counterparts. In many cases minorities are less likely to have routine care visits in the previous year comparison to Caucasian. Additionally, to the barriers of access to care, minorities experience poor experience in health care. It is reported that low-income people of all races report worse health status than higher income status. (Winker, 2006) So, where does the U.S. go from this point forward? What is known we still have a health care disparity that exist and persist in the U.S. While health disparities still are viewed, and reflected in race/ethnicity,