Fair Health News Issue 3

America's Health Rankings Report Includes Commentary from the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies

On Tuesday, November 17^th, United Health Foundation released their "America's Health Rankings" report.  The report rates states on the overall health of their residents, considering four main components: community and environment, clinical care, behaviors, and public health and policy.    The rankings can be viewed at http://www.americashealthrankings.org.  Included with the rankings is "Addressing Racial and Ethnic Health and Healthcare Inequities: The Imperative to Achieve Equity" by Dr. Brian D. Smedley.  To access this piece and other resources, click here.

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Upcoming Events

Healthcare for the Future: Beyond the Reform Debate

The National Academy of Public Administration’s fall meeting, entitled “Healthcare for the Future: Beyond the Reform Debate” will be held on November 19-20 at the National Academy of Public Administration suites in Washington, DC.  Dr. Brian Smedley will participate in a session on November 19^th from 2:30pm to 4:00pm entitled “Health Care Disparities”.  The session will discuss the magnitude and consequences of health disparities, the implications current health reform options, as well as the challenges we face in developing an equitable health care system.

Webinar: The CUE Equity Model

The Sullivan Alliance in collaboration with the Center for Urban Education in the University of Southern California is pleased to invite you to a webinar entitled: The CUE Equity Model:  A System Wide Process of Tracking Race-Based Inequities and Increasing Institutional Accountability in Post-Secondary Education.  The webinar will be broadcast live on December 8, 2009 1:30-3:00 PM Eastern Time.  This free, 90- minute webinar will benefit campus practitioners including presidents, faculty members, counselors, deans and directors by presenting an evidence-based, system-wide approach to diversity in higher education.  To register, click here.

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The Month in Review...

Where Do We Go From Here? Combating Healthcare Disparities in an Era of Reform

The Grant Makers in Health Fall Forum, "The Intersection of Health, Policy, and Philanthropy", was held November 5-6, 2009 in the Barbara Jordan Conference Center at the Henry J. Kaiser Foundation.  On the first day of the forum, titled "Where do We Go From Here?", Dr. Brian D. Smedley participated in two panels: "Disparities and Health Reform: The Legislation and What Comes Next" and "The Unfinished Health Equity Agenda: What Comes Next and Next Steps for Funders".  To view presentations from the forum and the full agenda, visit the Grant Makers in Health website, here.

The Disparity Reducing Advances Project Panel

The Disparity Advance Project in Conjunction with the Congressional Black Caucus Braintrust held A Disparity Foresight Briefing: “Beyond Health Care Reform: Health and Equity in All Policies”, on October 20^th.  The briefing featured remarks from Congresswoman Donna Christensen, and a panel of experts in various health related fields.  The Briefing addressed several topics in health disparities including the excess of African American deaths due to health inequities and the current health care reform proposals.  Panelist Larry Cohen, the Executive Director the Prevention Institute, placed an emphasis on “Two Step Prevention”, which seeks to address social and environmental factors that lead to health inequality.  Some of the current health care proposals, such as the Health Equity and Accountability Act of 2009, integrate components that would address this theory.  HPI’s Dr. Brian Smedley discussed “The Economic Burden of Health Inequalities in the United States”, a report recently released by the Joint Center.  Findings reveal that the United States spent as much as $50 Million on health costs due to health inequalities between 2003 and 2006.  Many of these costs can be traced to factors that disproportionately affect communities of color for a variety of reasons, and can often be traced to segregation.  The question and answer portion of the panel addressed questions ranging from the health of migrants to developing a cohesive strategy to address health care nationally.

Sullivan Alliance Round Table

The Sullivan Alliance has held a special round table in Maryland in October, 2009, bringing key health professions schools together to enter in a dialogue on joining efforts to diversify the health professions in Maryland.  More than 40 people attended the forum representing schools of medicine, dentistry, public health, and nursing.  The group voted to form a steering committee to deliberate on the logistics and agenda for the new collaborative.  Dr. Michelle Gourdine former deputy to the Maryland Secretary of Health and Mental Hygiene was selected to Chair the steering committee, which is slated to meet again on December 9, 2009.

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In the News