The ACA does much to increase the likelihood that more minority patients than ever before will be covered by health insurance in the next few years, but there is substantial evidence that coverage alone cannot reduce disparities in quality of care and outcomes
In this Reform in Action brief, lessons from Aligning Forces for Quality (AF4Q) and Finding Answers initiatves demonstrate how collecting race, ethnicity, and language data can help identify disparities in quality of care and be used to develop quality improvement interventions tailored to specific patient populations.
bil. was spent among minorities for high blood pressure, diabetes & stroke in 2009
Research shows that even when access to care is equal, racial and ethnic minorities tend to receive a lower quality of health care thatn Whites.
While disparities remain, recent evidence of their narrowing suggests that eliminating them is possible. At current rates of improvement, all racial and ethnic groups could receive the same care by 2015.
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s Aligning Forces for Quality (AF4Q) and Finding Answersinitiatives are actively studying, developing and implementing strategies to reduce racial and ethnic gaps in care. By focusing on the collection of race, ethnicity and language data, improving translation services, and sharing best practices, these projects are leading the way to reduce disparities in care.
This special interview between Melissa Partin, PhD, Deputy Editor of the Journal of General Internal Medicine and Marshall Chin, MD, Director of Finding Answers discusses a roadmap for ending health disparities.
Aligning Forces for Quality (AF4Q) shares lessons and resources from its efforts to elevate the quality of health care in 16 regions around the country in a series of Reform in Action suites:
