Journal of racial and ethnic health disparities
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J Racial Ethn Health Disparities · Aug 2018
The 21st Century Cures Act Implications for the Reduction of Racial Health Disparities in the US Criminal Justice System: a Public Health Approach.
Past drug epidemics have disproportionately criminalized drug addiction among African Americans, leading to disparate health outcomes, increased rates of HIV/AIDS, and mass incarceration. Conversely, the current opioid addiction crisis in the USA focuses primarily on white communities and is being addressed as a public health problem. The 21st Century Cures Act has the potential to reduce racial health disparities in the criminal justice system through the Act's public health approach to addiction and mental health issues. ⋯ This paper discusses the implications of this landmark legislation and its potential to decrease racial health disparities, highlighting the importance of ensuring that access to treatment and alternatives to incarceration must include communities of color. In this paper, the authors explain the key components of the 21st Century Cures Act that are specific to criminal justice reform, including a key objective, which is treatment over incarceration. We suggest that without proper attention to how, and where, funding mechanisms are distributed, the 21st Century Cures Act has the potential to increase racial health disparities rather than alleviate them.
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J Racial Ethn Health Disparities · Aug 2018
Comparative StudyRacial Discrimination and Mental Health in the USA: Testing the Reverse Racism Hypothesis.
The present study examined whether the health disadvantages consequent of racial discrimination experienced by four racial/ethnic minority groups are equivalent with that of the dominant racial group. ⋯ Analyses indicated that racial discrimination poses stronger mental health disadvantages on racial/ethnic minorities than it does to non-Hispanic whites. This finding not only refutes the notion of reverse racism, but also calls for more efforts to close the racial/ethnic health gap for those exposed to racial discrimination.
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J Racial Ethn Health Disparities · Aug 2018
Racial/Ethnic Disparities: a Longitudinal Study of Growth Trajectories Among US Kindergarten Children.
While previous studies have documented racial/ethnic disparities in childhood obesity, less is known about when disparities emerge, how they evolve, and the most appropriate early childhood period for targeted interventions. We examined racial/ethnic differences in growth trajectories among US kindergarten-aged children followed from birth and identified sensitive periods at which disparities emerge. ⋯ Racial/ethnic disparities in US children's weight status and growth trajectories emerge at different ages for different racial groups, but they are generally well established by kindergarten age. Our findings indicate that interventions designed to prevent early childhood overweight/obesity should be implemented early in the life course.
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J Racial Ethn Health Disparities · Aug 2018
Racial/Ethnic Disparities in Morbidity and Mortality for Preterm Neonates Admitted to a Tertiary Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.
The objective of this study was to assess whether in-hospital morbidity or mortality differed by race/ethnicity for preterm neonates admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). ⋯ In preterm neonates, in-hospital mortality does not significantly differ across racial and ethnic groups. However, in very preterm infants, in-hospital mortality for Black neonates is improved. There are morbidity differences (RDS, ROP) seen among racial/ethnic groups.