Racial Disparity In Health Care Essay

Historically discrimination against minority groups has been a reoccurring problem in the U.S. In 1857 the U.S. Supreme Court denied citizenship and basic rights to African Americans (Civil rights, 2015). Over time, through many legal and legislative acts African Americans were slowly granted full rights. Today, the issue of unconscious racial bias among doctors is prevalent in America. These physicians tend to demonstrate dominate conversations with African Americans during visits, pay less attention to the patients emotional and social needs and make the patient feel less involved in decision making (medical news today, 2012).
Experiences of discrimination in health care can lead to patient mistrust, delay in seeking care, reduced health

In a Health care and Research Quality report focusing on national trends in the equality of health care, it was found that major disparities still exist in America (Casale, 2010). Casale (2010), found that blacks received worse care than Whites for about 40% of measures, Asian Americans received worse care than Whites for about 20% of measures, and Hispanics received worse care than non- Hispanic Whites for about 60% of core measures. These statistics reflected the disparities and show an alarming gap in the quality of care being received. According to the Agency for Health care Research and Quality (AHRQ), very few disparities in quality of care for minorities are

Individual minorities do not always have the opportunity to see a primary provider because the cost is too significant or rural areas don’t have the means to provide substantial health care locations. In a study conducted by Hayes, Riley, Radley, and McCarthy (2015), Black and Hispanic working adults reported a time in the past year when they could not see a health care provider (HCP) because of cost. The cost of seeking a HCP can be significantly higher for uninsured