Approaches to Solving Health Disparities Panel Reflections

Abstract

The articles on approaches to solving health disparities1–4 in this supplement to Pediatrics address 2 overarching themes: 1. The paucity of research on interventions to reduce child disparities: Most intervention research has focused on adults, and most medical or clinical care research has focused on general quality improvement rather than disparities. 2. The need to directly or indirectly address disparities in health status and in health care. Addressing health care disparities will not eliminate health-status disparities, but failure to address health care disparities could worsen health-status disparities. Addressing disparities in health care is, in part, about equity goals, but it is also about accountability in the health system. Third-party payers in the public and private sectors expect that people with similar needs will receive similar treatment. This is a matter of basic fairness. The articles point out that disparities related to race/ethnicity, socioeconomic status, generation, and geography are closely intertwined. Disentangling this web could be useful for developing more tailored interventions, but it is not critical for making progress in reducing racial disparities. For example, Ochoa and Nash3 discuss … Address correspondence to Marsha Lillie-Blanton, DrPH, George Washington University School of Public Health and Health Services, Department of Health Policy, Ross Hall, Washington, DC 20010. E-mail: lblanton{at}gwu.edu