339560
Heckler Report and the HHS Response to Ending Health Disparities in America
Monday, November 2, 2015
: 2:30 p.m. - 2:50 p.m.
J. Nadine Gracia, MD, MSCE,
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Minority Health, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Rockville, MD
The publication of the 1985 HHS Report of the Secretary’s Task Force on Black and Minority Health, commonly referred to as the Heckler Report, elevated minority health onto a national stage and served as a driving force for the monumental changes in research, policies, programs, and legislation to end health disparities in America. However, despite our progress, disparities persist. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), through the HHS Office of Minority Health, is working to address inequities in health and health care and advance health equity for racial and ethnic minority populations through the Affordable Care Act, to provide all populations with access to quality and affordable health care; the HHS Action Plan to Reduce Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities, to heighten the impact of HHS policies and programs; and the National Partnership for Action to End Health Disparities to mobilize a nationwide, comprehensive, and community-driven movement using a social determinants of health approach. In conjunction with HHS partners that span the economic, education, health, and justice sectors, HHS continues to leverage these strategies to help achieve a nation free of disparities in health and health care.
Learning Areas:
Public health or related public policy
Learning Objectives:
Describe how the Heckler Report served as a driving force to end health disparities in America.
Describe 3 strategies employed by HHS to address health disparities.
Presenting author's disclosure statement:Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I serve as the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Minority Health and Director of the Office of Minority Health (OMH) at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Under my leadership, OMH works to improve the health of racial and ethnic minority populations through the development of health policies and programs that will help eliminate health disparities.
Any relevant financial relationships? No
I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines,
and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed
in my presentation.
