Black doctors on the front lines against racism in medicine across the U. S. had hoped that the revelation of racially disparate suffering and death amidst the Coronavirus pandemic (COVID 19) would become the “Bloody Sunday” for revealing the truth about health disparities in America and escalate the long struggle to end them. But that has apparently not happened.
The next phase of the COVID-19 pandemic in California has arrived. As the state begins to implement its SMARTER Plan, protecting ourselves and our communities from COVID-19 and its fast-spreading variants through vaccination can ensure better outcomes for us all.
Health disparities and unequal access to health care afflicted marginalized and vulnerable Los Angeles communities long before the onset of COVID-19.
Through the state’s new CalAIM program, virtually all California residents will have access to health insurance.
Philanthropist MacKenzie Scott has made a $20 million donation to Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science (CDU) in South Los Angeles, one of the nation’s four historically Black medical schools and a member of the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities.
As California continues to grow it’s crucial to prioritize meaningful change to eliminate health inequities and bridge the divide in access and quality of care.
Chavis, a student and disciple of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and a member of the famous Wilmington 10 civil rights group, began his new show on Sunday, Oct. 4, featuring Major Neil Franklin, the executive director of the Law Enforcement Action Partnership (LEAP) and House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn (D-SC).
A Healthier Community Starts with YOUth is a program that aims to level the playing field and address some of these health disparities.
A recent study by the National Urban League Policy Institute found that health disparities cost the U.S. economy $82.2 billion in 2009, $60 billion in health care spending and $22.2 billion in lost productivity. Left alone, costs associated with chronic health conditions facing certain ethnic groups are expected to soar to $363 billion in 2050 as the U.S. population grows increasingly diverse.