Today marks the beginning of Black History Month. As we reflect on the history, contributions, and culture of the Black community, we’re planning a series of emails over the course of February to examine the racial disparities in our current, profit-driven health care system — and how we can address them through Medicare for All.
Health and health care aren’t one-size-fits-all, and all too often, Black patients in the United States experience disparities in health insurance, treatment, and outcomes. As the Kaiser Family Foundation points out, “these disparities have been exacerbated by the uneven impacts of the COVID-pandemic, ongoing racism and discrimination, and police violence against and killings of Black people.”1
Studies show the uninsured rate for nonelderly people, the percent of nonelderly adults who didn’t see a doctor due to cost, and the likelihood of experiencing a family income below poverty, food insecurity, or being treated unfairly while getting health care are all higher for Black people than white people in the U.S.1
This contributes to worse health outcomes, including lower life expectancy, higher risk of hospitalization and death due to COVID-19, higher rate of cancer deaths, and higher maternal and infant mortality rates for Black patients compared to white patients.1
A new study on the growth of employer-sponsored health insurance premium costs and its association with wage inequality published this January also shows that in all 32 years of this study, health care premiums as a percentage of compensation were significantly higher for non-Hispanic Black and Hispanic families than for non-Hispanic White families.2
While we are all negatively impacted by our broken health care system, it’s clear that the Black community faces a disproportionate amount of harm. It’s a key reason why we need to establish a single-payer health care system that guarantees health care with justice and equity for all.
Stay tuned for the first email in our Black History Month series next week as we discuss how Medicare for All would directly address these historic inequities and how we can work together to transform our health care system.
In solidarity,
Nurses' Campaign to Win Medicare for All
Sources:
1. “How Recognizing Health Disparities for Black People is Important for Change,” KFF, February 13, 2023
https://www.kff.org/policy-watch/how-recognizing-health-disparities-for-black-people-is-important-for-change/
2. “Employer-Sponsored Health Insurance Premium Cost Growth and Its Association With Earnings Inequality Among US Families,” Kurt Hager, PhD, Ezekiel Emanuel, MD, and Dariush Mozaffarian, MD, JAMA Network, January 16, 2024
https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2813927
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