Medical Care Research and Review Examines Racial, Ethnic Health Disparities
A special supplement of the journal Medical Care Research and Review, released this month, examines racial and ethnic health disparities. The issue grew out of an October 1999 policy roundtable convened by the Kaiser Family Foundation, entitled "Race, Ethnicity and Medical Care: Improving Access in a Diverse Society," and a subsequent companion forum for researchers from HCFA and the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality to discuss future studies on race and ethnicity in medical care. The supplement includes original research on trends in disparities, information about medical treatment and the decision-making process, legal analysis of civil rights laws in relation to managed care and national survey findings on public awareness of racial "inequities" in health care. The following is the journal's table of contents:
- Health Insurance Coverage and Access to Care: "Race/Ethnicity and Health Insurance Status 1987 and 1996;" "Racial and Ethnic Differences in Access to and Use of Health Care Services, 1977 to 1996;" "Race and Ethnic Disparities in Health Care Access and Utilization: An Examination of State Variation;" "Racial and Ethnic Differences in Preventable Hospitalizations across 10 States."
- Race and Ethnicity in Medical Decision Making: "Racial and Ethnic Differences in Access to Medical Care;" "Attitudes about Racism, Medical Mistrust and Satisfaction with Care among African American and White Cardiac Patients;" "The Effect of Race on the Referral Process for Invasive Cardiac Procedures;" "Can Cultural Competency Reduce Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities? A Review and Conceptual Model."
- Racial/Ethnic Equality in Health Care: Public Perceptions and Legal Remedies: "Race, Ethnicity and the Health Care System: Public Perceptions and Experiences;" "U.S. Civil Rights Policy and Access to Health Care by Minority Americans: Implications for a Changing Health Care System" (Medical Care Research and Review, Supplement 1 2000).
