HEALTH DISPARITIES

Is There Disparity in Physician Service Use? A Comparison of Hispanic and White Medicare Beneficiaries

Is There Disparity in Physician Service Use? A Comparison of Hispanic and White Medicare Beneficiaries

Introduction

There are varying definitions of health disparities, or healthcare inequality, within the healthcare community. A health disparity, defined as a substantial difference in health between one population and another. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) defines health disparities as “the differences between groups of people that can affect how frequently a disease affects a group, how many people get sick, or how often the disease causes death.” The NIH identifies the different populations influenced by health disparities as “racial and ethnic minorities; residents of rural areas; women, children, the elderly; and persons with disabilities.”

One could argue that disparity is a result of discrimination, and that discrimination creates disparity; a clarification of the terms will give a better understanding of these analogous yet dissimilar words. Black's Law Dictionary (2001), describes disparity as, “inequality; a difference in quantity or quality between two or more things”. Racial Disparity exists in the criminal justice system when an ethnic or racial group that controls the system exists in a proportion higher than the population they control (Reducing Racial Disparity) (Boulware, 2003).

Discussion

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) explains health disparities as “differences in the incidence, prevalence, and mortality of a disease and the related adverse health conditions that exist among population groups. Some of these populations characterized by a greater rate of avoidable disabilities, disease, and death compared to other populations and non minorities. Therefore, all issues related to health disparities discussed in detail (Halbert, 2006).

Health Disparities in Different Groups within A Community

There are several factors that contribute to health disparities in different groups within a community. Most notably, these disparities are attributed by ...