Health Disparities
Women of color have higher rates of sexually transmitted infections (STI) and HIV infection, higher maternal mortality rates, and more limited access to family planning services than White women. We must address the racial and ethnic disparities in the health care system overall to guarantee every woman the right to make personal decisions regarding the full range of reproductive choices. NARAL Pro-Choice Massachusetts is committed to ensuring that women of color have equal access to high quality and affordable reproductive health care. Learn more about our Organizational Diversity efforts. Download our fact sheet (pdf) to learn more. On August 8, 2007, NARAL Pro-Choice Massachusetts attended the official rollout of the Health Care Disparities Commission Report. Learn more.
What are health disparities?Racial and ethnic health disparities refer to unequal health risks, access to health care, and quality of treatment affecting people of different racial and ethnic backgrounds. Blacks, Latinos, and Asians in Massachusetts disproportionately face higher rates of chronic illness and mortality than do residents of the state as a whole. For example: • Black women are four times as likely to die of cervical cancer as White women. Asian women have among the highest rates of cervical cancer in Massachusetts and the U.S.
• The infant mortality rate among Blacks is twice as high as that of Whites.
• HIV/AIDS rates among Blacks are 13 times higher than among Whites, and Latino rates are eight times higher than for Whites.
• Black women are more likely to die from breast cancer than any other racial or ethnic group, even though Whites experience higher incidence rates. NARAL Pro-Choice Massachusetts supports bills to reduce racial and ethnic health disparities, including: An Act Relative to the Commission for the Elimination of Health Disparities (H.1149, sponsored by Rep. Peter Koutoujian)
This bill would create a commission for the elimination of health disparities in the Executive Office of Health and Human Services (EOHHS). The commission would monitor and assess programs to determine their impact on health disparities and annually report on progress. An Act to Eliminate Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities in the Commonwealth (H.2234, sponsored by Rep. Byron Rushing) This bill would create a new state Office of Health Equity, housed in the Executive Office of Health and Human Services (EOHHS,) to coordinate efforts of public agencies to eliminate disparities. Among other things it would: • Promote the use of Community Health Workers to improve access to care • Reimburse for language interpreter services • Establish a disparities reduction grant program for community health centers and others • Increase health care workforce diversity • Coordinate data collection practices across public and private agencies
The Disparities Action Network (DAN) is a statewide coalition of leaders and organizations committed to eliminating racial and ethnic health disparities in Massachusetts. DAN Partner Organizations: Action for Boston Community Development; Boston Center for Community & Justice; Boston Public Health Commission; Center for Community Health Education Research and Service (CCHERS); Children’s Hospital Boston, Office of Child Advocacy; Critical MASS; Community Catalyst; Health Care For All; Latin American Health Institute; The Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law of the Boston Bar Association; Massachusetts General Hospital Disparities Solutions Center; Massachusetts Medical Interpreters Association; Mass CONECT, Harvard School of Public Health; NARAL Pro-Choice Massachusetts; Physicians for Human Rights; SEIU 1199.
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