From Disparity to Parity in Health” Eliminating Health Disparities - Call to Action

Abstract

Shortly after Governor Mike Easley appointed her as Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services, Carmen Hooker Odom declared eliminating health disparities a priority for the department. The Secretary charged the Office of Minority Health and Health Disparities with lead responsibility for developing the DHHS Call to Action to Eliminate Health Disparities. A Steering Committee on the Elimination of Health Disparities was also established. The committee, which guides the work of the department in building the department’s capacity to identify and address disparities in each division, is made up of representatives from fourteen divisions and offices in DHHS. The DHHS Call to Action to Eliminate Health Disparities represents the work of the Office of Minority Health and Health Disparities and the DHHS Steering Committee of Eliminating Health Disparities. The Call to Action provides an overview of North Carolina demographics and health disparities. Although the health status of North Carolinians has continued to improve over the last decade, the health status of a large segment of North Carolinians continues to lag behind that of the general population. Recent reports from the North Carolina State Center for Health Statistics document persisting racial and ethnic disparities in health status for almost all conditions. The reports show that African Americans, American Indians and Hispanics in North Carolina are more likely to be in poorer health than the White population in the state.