Governor Dean Announces Plan To Curb Racial Disparities in Health Care

[unfrigginreal]

CHICAGO--Governor Dean today condemned racial disparities in the nation's health care system and explained that, as president, he would launch a multi-pronged attack to ensure that all Americans--regardless of race, geography, gender, or income--would have access to quality health care.

"As access to health insurance has declined for all but the wealthiest, it's tempting to define America's health care crisis only in economic terms. But our medical care system isn't plagued only by costly insurance premiums, but also by the lingering impact of institutional discrimination and other assorted biases," Dean said.

"In 2002 the Institute of Medicine confirmed what African Americans, Latinos and other racial minorities have always understood: that the quality of medical care they receive is routinely inferior to the care offered to white Americans. The simple, ugly truth is that if you are not white you are less likely to receive preventive care, face a greater risk of misdiagnosis, inadequate treatment and even premature death. This isn't true only for minority Americans living in poverty, but also for those whose health insurance and incomes are comparable to white Americans," Dean explained.

http://blog.deanforamerica.com/archives/002017.html

[DemDogs]

1. Edwards talked about this same problem in New Mexico debate

And laid out his plan to address it. (More of the same)