By Joshua Wolpe, DENVER DAILY NEWS
The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment’s Office of Health Disparities Wednesday released their report, “Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities in Colorado 2009,” which highlights diseases, disabilities and deaths that disproportionately affect Hispanics, blacks, American Indians and Asians.
This is the third report prepared by the CDPHE to examine racial and ethnic health disparities in the state, following reports in 2001 and 2005. Each of the four minority groups represented in the report has significant roots in Colorado, with Hispanics the most populous.
According to figures in 2007, Hispanics account for nearly 20 percent of the population, blacks make up nearly 4 percent, Asians nearly 3 percent and American Indians around 1 percent.
The report shows that racial and ethnic health disparities are complex, and suggest that solutions to close the gap should be equally complex and will need to operate on many levels.
“The report is one of the first steps in the journey of moving forward to eliminate health disparities,” said Dr. Ned Colange, Chief Medical Officer of the CDPHE, during Wednesday’s presentation. “I hope we find solutions during my term here, but if not, then I hope it happens in my lifetime.”
‘Not in a vacuum’
Much of the data in the report was collected from community groups and numerous studies. Dr. Alyson Shupe, Health Statistics Section Chief of the CDPHE, presented the statistics and briefly touched on some of the areas that concern the department.
“Health does not happen in a vacuum,” she said. “So many factors play a role – where we live, how we are born, how much money our parents have, etc. All of these contribute to our health, along with our physical environment.”
Two of the key indicators Shupe noted were high school graduation rates and household income figures.
According to the Colorado Department of Education’s 2007 statistics, 82 percent of whites graduated high school, compared to 65 percent of blacks, 59 percent of American Indians and 57 percent of Hispanics. Shupe then cited 2006 Census figures that showed the average white household earned nearly $58,000, compared to nearly $36,000 for Hispanics and $35,000 for blacks.
“Education is the gateway to income, and income drives access to health care,” she said.
Shupe went on to point out the high rate of low-weight births, infant mortality and obesity in some minority communities, and how that relates to a trend of unhealthy behavior.
“People in those situations are likely to carry that pattern forward. The connection between obesity and chronic disease are too strong to ignore.”
Solutions elusive
While the report seems to do a comprehensive job of covering the factors behind the health disparities in minority populations, the CDPHE acknowledges that solutions will not be easy, requiring a large grassroots community effort.
“To impact the root causes, we need a greater understanding,” said Mauricio Palacio, Director of the Office of Health Disparities. “We need to involve communities, environments and schools. Sustainability will be key — I know money is scarce but we have to work at it.”
Visit cdphe.state.co.us for more information.
Distributed by Colorado Capitol Reporters
