May 2012
www.hamptonroadsmessenger.com
Health Disparities Undermine America’s Future
WASHINGTON,
D.C.—Health disparities are creating economic burdens for families, communities and the U.S. health care system. Across the country, infant mortality and chronic diseases continue to affect people of color at rates far higher than those for whites.
In recent years, the Photo: Drexel University School of Public Health
focus has increased on the impact of disparities on minority communities, with public officials, community activists, civic leaders and health care experts proposing ways to improve access to medical care and raise awareness of positive benefits of preventive care. But health experts say the economic toll of health disparities and substantial costs associated with lost productivity are being overlooked.
Diabetes, High Blood Pressure, Cancer . . .
“Racial and ethnic groups have
higher incidences of diabetes, high blood pressure and cancer, et cetera,” said Brian D. Smedley, vice president and director of the Health Policy Institute at the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies in Washington, D.C.
“That prevalence [of chronic
diseases] comes with a price tag in terms of excess direct medical costs, nearly $230 billion over a four-year period that we studied,” he went on.
The study found that from 2003
through 2006, 30.6 percent of direct medical care expenditures for African- Americans, Asians and Hispanics were excess costs due to health inequalities. The study estimated that eliminating health disparities for minorities would have reduced direct medical expenditures by $229.4 billion and slashed indirect costs associated with illness and premature death by more than $1 trillion for those years.
The 2010 National Healthcare
Quality and Disparities Report, a federal government study, documented that racial and ethnic minorities often receive poorer care than whites while facing more barriers in seeking preventive care, acute treatment or chronic disease management.
According to the report, minorities
also experience rates of preventable hospitalization that, in some cases, are almost double that of whites; African- Americans have higher hospitalization rates from influenza; and black children are twice as likely to be hospitalized and more than four times as likely to die from asthma as white children.
Thomas A. LaVeist, director of the
Hopkins Center for Health Disparities at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in Baltimore, said increased health risks for minorities are directly related to where they live and work.
“The fact is that we have an
inequitable distribution of opportunity,” he said. “Where you live determines what schools your children get to attend. It determines if your house will appreciate or depreciate and whether you can create wealth. It also determines whether you are exposed to environmental inequalities and the type of health care facility available to you.
Where you live, work, play and pray affects quality of health care.”
Jennifer Ng’andu, deputy director of
the Health Policy Project at the National Council of La Raza in Washington, speaks even more pointedly: “If we look at communities of color, we see that many racial and ethnic groups live in unsafe environments. There is poor housing and there is loss of productivity because of illness.
She continued, “Essentially, every
time a person of color goes to the doctor, 30 percent of their bill is due to health disparities. So they end up paying more in the doctor’s office because over time they receive health care that is not appropriate or effective.”
The Impact on Children Health experts and civic leaders say
financial strains are adversely manifested in varying ways in communities and have a huge impact on children, often involving academic performance.
“A child who does not have good
access to health services will experience developmental setbacks because they are sick or their parents are sick,” Ng’andu said. “It makes it harder for them to achieve in school and can have serious consequences on their future.”
According to the Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in Atlanta, the percentage of children and adolescents with a chronic disease swelled from 1.8 percent in the 1960s to 7 percent in 2004.
The increase has an adverse
impact on childhood education. For example, a report by the American Lung Association says asthma is a leading cause nationwide of youngsters missing school. Asthma affects Puerto Rican and African American children more often, perhaps because they often live in communities with poor air quality.
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among children, but particularly among black and Latino children,” said Sinsi Hernandez-Cancio, director of health equity at Families USA in Washington. “You are more likely to lose a limb, have a heart attack or lose a kidney, and the longer you have the disease, the greater the toll on life quality.
Further, she said, “There is also an
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impact on children when other family members have a disease because they sometime miss school to care for an ill family member.”
In addition, Hernandez-Cancio
noted, “Kids are forced to be translators at the doctor’s office. That has an enormous toll, so they see firsthand all this information on how mommy or daddy is not doing well. We have had stories of children staying home to take care of their parent or another sibling. Stresses such as these affect their ability to develop into an independent, productive individual.”
AMERICA’S FUTURE PAGE 6
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Loans
FROM PAGE 1 “Small business owners willing to
put their personal credit record on the line may find a credit card convenient, but it can be an expensive financing tool,” said Luke W. Reynolds, Chief of the FDIC’s Outreach and Program Development Section. “Owners using a credit card also can quickly find themselves taking on debt that cannot reasonably be supported by projected revenues from the business.”
He added that one problem with
home equity lines is “the potential to lose your home if you are unable to repay funds as agreed.” (Also see concerns about “frozen” or reduced home equity lines in Common Questions to the FDIC from Small Businesses.)
• Business lines of credit, which
provide a convenient way for a business to borrow up to a certain dollar amount and repay it in installments with interest over several years, also present risks. “Business owners should think
The Hampton Roads Messenger
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carefully before borrowing on a line of credit,” said Mary Bass, a Senior Community Affairs Specialist with the FDIC. “Consider how and when the business will generate revenue to repay the loan, and make sure you aren’t using a short-term financing tool to finance costly, long-term investments.”
• Business term loans, which
establish a set dollar amount to be repaid in installments over three or more years, are commonly recommended for purposes such as financing the purchase of equipment or a vehicle. These loans often are secured by the asset that is purchased. “Term loans mean predictable payments for businesses, but unlike lines of credit, a business may have to make a new application if it needs to borrow additional funds,” explained Emerson Hall, an FDIC Community Affairs Specialist.
You can improve your chances of
getting a good loan. Start by having a well-prepared business plan showing how money will be earned, which can reassure lenders that a loan will be repaid.
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