Question

Find a news article published in the past year about a health disparity or an attempt to address a health disparity. Give a summary in a few sentences and provide a link to the article.

Answer 1

Over the past decade, a rapidly expanding body of literature has demonstrated the existence of disparities in health and health care. While consensus has not emerged regarding the causes of disparities, they are generally thought to be related to sociocultural, behavioral, economic, environmental, biologic, or societal factors. To effectively address disparities, several authorities have suggested the need for greater information technology research and investments. eHealth researchers may be able to make significant contributions in this area through research and its applications. This paper begins with a historical overview of health disparities in the United States and Europe. It then discusses the role that the Internet, and access to the Internet, may play in the genesis of health disparities. Finally, this paper closes with a discussion of the potential benefits of eHealth applications and the possible contributions of the field to overcoming disparities in health and health care.

Keywords: access to information, socioeconomic factors, Internet, disparities, eHealth, minorities

Black/African American, American Indians and Hispanic groups are more likely to die of diabetes. Black/African Americans and White groups have higher death rates for heart disease and cancer. For all three diseases, Black/African Americans have the highest death rates while Asian/Pacific Islanders have the lowest.

In 2008, approximately 33%, or more than 100 million people, identified themselves as belonging to a racial or ethnic minority population.
...

• Race and ethnicity.
• Gender.
• Sexual identity and orientation.
• Disability status or special health care needs.
• Geographic location (rural and urban)
• Beyond coverage, there are an array of other challenges to addressing disparities, including limited capacity to address social determinants of health, declines in funding for prevention and public health and health careworkforce initiatives, and ongoing gaps in data to measure and understand disparities.