[NYAPRS Enews] KHDR: Report Finds Racial Disparities In NYS Health Plans

[Matt Canuteson]

Report Finds Racial Health Disparities Among New York State Health Plan
Beneficiaries

Kaiser Health Disparities Report May 19, 2009

 

The New York City-based advocacy group Community Service Society
<http://www.cssny.org/>  recently released a report that found racial
health disparities among state health plan beneficiaries, New York
Times' "City Room
<http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/05/18/racial-disparities-found-u
nder-state-health-plans/> " reports. The report urged state officials to
close the gaps. The roughly 20 health plans that contract with the state
public health programs to provide health insurance to low-income
residents are required to break down health indicators by race. Using
data from the New York State Department of Health
<http://www.health.state.ny.us/> , researchers found that out of 12
measures the state uses in quality assurance, including dental visits,
asthma management, mammography and almost all diabetes indicators:

 

*	Blacks experienced health outcomes that were significantly worse
statistically in 10 of the 12 measures;
*	Whites had significantly worse outcomes in three measures,
including childhood immunizations and mammography; 
*	Asian-Americans had statistically better health indicators than
other groups in almost every area; and
*	Outcomes among Hispanics were comparable or better than that of
whites. 

 

Elisabeth Benjamin, one of the authors of the study, said the
differences could not be explained fully by socioeconomic status.
"They've all made the same income cut. These are low-income people,"
Benjamin said. CSS President David Jones said, "It opens the windows
into the fact that something is wrong." 

 

The report recommends that the state use part of a $63 million bonus
pool to fund incentive programs for government health plans, such as
paying rewards to plans that reach certain health benchmarks. "Our
position is that the health system is failing African-American folks,
and we know that pay-for-performance works," Benjamin said, adding,
"We're saying let's use [pay-for-performance programs] with a race lens,
which has never been done in the country. We think this is one of the
areas where New York state can take a lead in the country" (Lee, "City
Room," New York Times, 5/18).



The report is available online
<http://www.cssny.org/userimages/downloads/Promoting_Equity_May2009.pdf>
(.pdf).





 

 

 

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