New Health Disparities Report Reveals Urgent Need to Address Maternal Mortality, Mental & Behavioral Health, & Food Insecurit...
June 29 2021 - 8:00AM
Business Wire
Widespread health disparities persist ed across
racial, ethnic, gender, geographic and educational lines before
COVID-19 pandemic, according to America’s Health Rankings Health
Disparities Report
The United Health Foundation, the philanthropic foundation of
UnitedHealth Group (NYSE: UNH), released its inaugural America’s
Health Rankings Health Disparities Report, highlighting persistent
and widening gaps in health and well-being by race and ethnicity,
gender, geography and educational level.
The report, and associated interactive website, builds on more
than three decades of data and reporting from America’s Health
Rankings®, and provides a comprehensive portrait of the breadth,
depth and persistence of disparities in population health over
time, in an effort to spark meaningful dialogue and action to
advance health equity. Importantly, the report focuses on
pre-pandemic data, providing an in-depth baseline measure of the
magnitude of health disparities.
UnitedHealth Group plans to use the findings of this report as a
critical source of information to fulfill its mission of making the
health system work better for everyone.
Key findings of the report at the national level include:
- Deep and persistent disparities in mental and behavioral health
by gender, educational attainment, and race and ethnicity, which
have worsened for certain groups, particularly those without a high
school education and females. For example, in the 2017-2019 time
frame, adults with less than a high school education had a rate of
frequent mental distress that was 123% higher than college
graduates, and females had a 70% higher rate of depression compared
to males.
- Persistent and growing disparities in maternal mortality,
including ongoing disparities among Black mothers who face a
maternal mortality rate that is 3.4 times higher than Hispanic
mothers. Rates of maternal mortality increased 55% for white
mothers, 23% for Hispanic mothers, and 22% for Black mothers
between 2005-2009 and 2015-2019.
- Wide and growing disparities in household food insecurity, most
notably for American Indian/Alaska Natives. In fact, this
subpopulation experienced a 39% rate increase between 2003-2007 and
2015-2019.
- A strong link between educational attainment and health, with
those without a high school education facing the greatest social,
economic and health challenges, and the largest health
disparities.
“Race and ethnicity, gender, geography, educational attainment
and income level should not limit one’s access to health care, or
the determinants and outcomes that contribute to our overall
well-being,” said Dr. Rhonda Randall, chief medical officer of
UnitedHealthcare Employer and Individual, part of UnitedHealth
Group. “Our 330,000 team members are dedicated to addressing health
disparities and closing gaps in care for the most vulnerable
populations.”
The broad range of disparities, across multiple factors, is
indicative of the work ahead to achieve more equitable health
outcomes. In addition to national findings, America’s Health
Rankings includes state highlights where progress has been made and
challenges persist, allowing local health officials and
policymakers to better focus their efforts.
“The America’s Health Rankings Health Disparities Report is an
excellent pre-pandemic baseline report for health and elected
officials, and other stakeholders,” said Georges C. Benjamin, MD,
executive director of the American Public Health Association. “It
provides actionable data that is relevant to leaders, not only in
public health, but also across many sectors.”
State-specific findings illustrate the vast differences across
populations and states. For example:
- Child poverty rates varied widely, with South Dakota – the
state with the highest disparities – exhibiting child poverty among
American Indian/Alaska Natives at more than 10 times the rate than
white children in Connecticut.
- In Hawaii – the state with lowest disparities in child poverty
– Hispanic children had a nearly 2 times higher rate of poverty
than white children.
- Food insecurity in North Dakota among Black households was
nearly 20 times higher than white households in the District of
Columbia.
- In 2015-2019, Georgia, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah and
Wyoming (all five states without Medicaid expansion prior to 2020)
had the highest racial and ethnic disparities in rates of uninsured
within their states, while Hawaii, Massachusetts, Michigan, New
York and Vermont (all five states that expanded Medicaid in 2014)
had the lowest disparities.
- Many states with high rates of Black infant mortality have not
made meaningful improvements. In particular, Black infants in
Alabama, Oklahoma and West Virginia had an infant mortality rate
that was 2.2 times higher than the national average in 2015-2018 –
rates that have largely remained unchanged.
- The states with the lowest rates of infant mortality are
located in the Northeast and on the West Coast. However, even
within these states, Black infants continue to face wide
disparities, including rates that are 2 to 3 times higher than
infants with the lowest rate in each state.
“The America’s Health Rankings Health Disparities Report
provides a unique, data-driven analysis that identifies disparities
not only according to race and ethnicity, but also gender,
geography and education level. Through new analyses, this report
provides public health officials and lawmakers with state-specific
findings on their state’s largest disparities so they can plan
better strategies to address them,” said Judy Monroe, MD, president
and CEO, CDC Foundation.
The America’s Health Rankings Health Disparities Report draws on
data across 30 measures of health, including social, economic and
environmental determinants of health as well as health outcomes, to
demonstrate the progress achieved and the challenges faced by a
variety of population groups at the national level, and in all 50
states and the District of Columbia.
UnitedHealth Group and America’s Health Rankings For more
than 30 years, UnitedHealth Group has used findings from America’s
Health Rankings reports, along with additional data and insights
from the organization’s 330,000 employees, to devise and deliver
targeted, meaningful solutions that address America’s health
disparities — in health care, insurance, clinical expertise and
financial support. UnitedHealth Group partners with national and
local organizations, government agencies, experts and lawmakers to
further improve and better target these solutions, and help all
people live healthier lives. In the past decade alone, UnitedHealth
Group has invested nearly $23 million in new and emerging
strategies to address maternal mortality, and in 2020 donated
nearly 70 million meals to national and state-based organizations
to address acute needs brought on by the pandemic. Learn more about
UnitedHealth Group’s commitment to building a sustainable health
care system in the company’s annual Sustainability Report.
About America’s Health Rankings For over three decades,
America’s Health Rankings has assessed the nation’s health and
provided data-driven insights to support better health outcomes and
build healthier communities. Produced by the United Health
Foundation, America’s Health Rankings evaluates a comprehensive set
of health, environmental and socioeconomic data to illuminate both
health challenges and successes, determine national and state
health benchmarks, and enable stakeholders to take action in
improving health.
About the United Health Foundation Through collaboration
with community partners, grants and outreach efforts, the United
Health Foundation works to improve our health system, build a
diverse and dynamic health workforce and enhance the well-being of
local communities. The United Health Foundation was established by
UnitedHealth Group (NYSE: UNH) in 1999 as a not-for-profit, private
foundation dedicated to improving health and health care. To date,
the United Health Foundation has committed more than $500 million
to programs and communities around the world. To learn more, visit
UnitedHealthFoundation.org.
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version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210629005267/en/
Caroline Landree, UnitedHealth Group 651-308-2481
caroline.landree@uhg.com
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