U.S. Department of Health & Human Services
  Contact Us
                                      Language Assistance Available
                          Español
              繁體中文
              简体中文
              Tiếng Việt
              한국어
              Tagalog
              Русский
              العربية
              Kreyòl Ayisyen
              Français
              Polski
              Português
              Italiano
              Deutsch
              日本語
              فارسی
              English

            
  Search
  Initiatives & Programs

                                                                        Programmatic Priorities

                                                                        COVID-19 Response & Recovery

                                                                        Advancing the Response to COVID-19 Virtual Symposium
        
                                
          
          
          COVID-19 Vaccines and Racial and Ethnic Minority Populations
        
                                
          
          
          National COVID-19 Resiliency Network (NCRN)
        
                                
          
          
          HTN Initiative
        
                                
          
          
          COVID-19 Health Equity Task Force
        
                                
          
          
          Cultural and Linguistic Competency

                                                                        Think Cultural Health
        
                                
          
          
          CLAS Behavioral Health Guide
        
                                
          
          
          Policies, Programs, and Practices
        
                                
          
          
          Tribal Affairs

                                                                        Tribal Leader Letters
        
                                
          
          
          Active OMH Grant Awards

                                                                        FY 2023 Grant Awards
        
                                
          
          
          FY 2022 Grant Awards
        
                                
          
          
          FY 2021 Grant Awards
        
                                
          
          
          FY 2020 Grant Awards
        
                                
          
          
          Lupus Grants
        
                                
          
          
          National Observances

                                                                        Hispanic Heritage Month
        
                                
          
          
          National Minority Health Month
        
                                
          
          
          Funding and Partnerships

                                                                        Open Funding Opportunities

                                                                        Become A Grant Reviewer
        
                                
          
          
          Disparity Impact Strategy
        
                                
          
          
          Data and Evaluation

                                                                        Population Profiles

                                                                        Black/African American

                                                                        Population Health Data
        
                                
          
          
          Pathfinder to Resources
        
                                
          
          
          American Indian and Alaska Native

                                                                        Population Health Data
        
                                
          
          
          Center for Indigenous Innovation and Health Equity
        
                                
          
          
          Tribal Affairs
        
                                
          
          
          Pathfinder to Resources
        
                                
          
          
          Asian American

                                                                        Population Health Data
        
                                
          
          
          Past and Present: Addressing Racism and Intolerance Against Asian Americans Virtual Panel
        
                                
          
          
          Pathfinder to Resources
        
                                
          
          
          Hispanic/Latino

                                                                        Population Health Data
        
                                
          
          
          Pathfinder to Resources
        
                                
          
          
          Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander

                                                                        Population Health Data
        
                                
          
          
          NHPI National Health Interview Survey
        
                                
          
          
          Center for Indigenous Innovation and Health Equity
        
                                
          
          
          Pathfinder to Resources
        
                                
          
          
          Data Collection Standards

                                                                        Final Standards
        
                                
          
          
          Implementation Guidance
        
                                
          
          
          Explanation of the Standards
        
                                
          
          
          Improving Data Collection for the LGBTQIA+ Community
        
                                
          
          
          Tools and Data Sets

                                                                        Healthy People 2020 Health Disparities Data Widget
        
                                
          
          
          Minority Health SVI
        
                                
          
          
          Compendium of Federal Data Sets Addressing Health Disparities*
        
                                
          
          
          Evaluation Resources
        
                                
          
          
          Resource Center

                                                                        Knowledge Center

                                                                        Online Catalog
        
                                
          
          
          Library Acquisitions
        
                                
          
          
          Health Disparities Bibliography
        
                                
          
          
          Pathfinders

                                                                        Black/African American Pathfinder to Resources
        
                                
          
          
          American Indian and Alaska Native Pathfinder to Resources
        
                                
          
          
          Asian American Pathfinder to Resources
        
                                
          
          
          Hispanic/Latino Pathfinder to Resources
        
                                
          
          
          Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Pathfinder to Resources
        
                                
          
          
          Funding Search Request
        
                                
          
          
          Resources

                                                                        OMH’s Justice and Health Initiatives
        
                                
          
          
          HIV/AIDS and PrEP Resources
        
                                
          
          
          Reentry Resources
        
                                
          
          
          Trauma Resources
        
                                
          
          
          Publications & Reports

                                                                        HHS Strategic Plans

                                                                        HHS Action Plan to Reduce Racial & Ethnic Health Disparities
        
                                
          
          
          2020 Update on the Action Plan to Reduce Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities
        
                                
          
          
          Data Briefs
        
                                
          
          
          Report to Congress
        
                                
          
          
          About OMH

                                                                        Contact Us
        
                                
          
          
          News

                                                                        Press Releases
        
                                
          
          
          Blog for Health Equity
        
                                
          
          
          Newsletters
        
                                
          
          
          OMH Organization

                                                                        Leadership

                                                                        RDML Felicia Collins, MD, MPH, FAAP, Director, Office of Minority Health
        
                                
          
          
          CAPT Tarsha Cavanaugh, Principal Deputy Director
        
                                
          
          
          Roslyn Holliday Moore, Deputy Director for Programs
        
                                
          
          
          Paul Rodriguez
        
                                
          
          
          Carmeyia Gillis, Director, Division of Information and Education
        
                                
          
          
          Juliet Bui, MPA, MSW, Director, Division of Policy and Data
        
                                
          
          
          Sonsiere Cobb-Souza, Director, Division of Program Operations
        
                                
          
          
          Regional Staff
        
                                
          
          
          Offices of Minority Health

                                                                        HHS OMH
        
                                
          
          
          State & Territorial OMH
        
                                
          
          
          Committees and Working Groups

                                                                        Advisory Committee on Minority Health

                                                                        Charter
        
                                
          
          
          Roster & Bios
        
                                
          
          
          Meetings
        
                                
          
          
          CIIHE Tribal Advisory Committee

                                                                        CIIHE NHPI Stakeholder Group
        
                                
          
          
          CIIHE TAC
        
                                
          
          
          CIIHE TAC Members
        
                                
          
          
          Interdepartmental Health Equity Collaborative

                                                                        Data Workgroup
        
                                
          
          
          Community Health Worker Workgroup
        
                                
          
          
          Data Workgroup Members
        
                                
          
          
          Data Workgroup Meetings
        
                                
          
          
          IHEC Members
        
                                
          
          
          Community Health Worker Workgroup Meetings

          
  Initiatives & Programs

                                                                        Programmatic Priorities

                                                                        COVID-19 Response & Recovery

                                                                        Advancing the Response to COVID-19 Virtual Symposium
        
                                
          
          
          COVID-19 Vaccines and Racial and Ethnic Minority Populations
        
                                
          
          
          National COVID-19 Resiliency Network (NCRN)
        
                                
          
          
          HTN Initiative
        
                                
          
          
          COVID-19 Health Equity Task Force
        
                                
          
          
          Cultural and Linguistic Competency

                                                                        Think Cultural Health
        
                                
          
          
          CLAS Behavioral Health Guide
        
                                
          
          
          Policies, Programs, and Practices
        
                                
          
          
          Tribal Affairs

                                                                        Tribal Leader Letters
        
                                
          
          
          Active OMH Grant Awards

                                                                        FY 2023 Grant Awards
        
                                
          
          
          FY 2022 Grant Awards
        
                                
          
          
          FY 2021 Grant Awards
        
                                
          
          
          FY 2020 Grant Awards
        
                                
          
          
          Lupus Grants
        
                                
          
          
          National Observances

                                                                        Hispanic Heritage Month
        
                                
          
          
          National Minority Health Month
        
                                
          
          
          Funding and Partnerships

                                                                        Open Funding Opportunities

                                                                        Become A Grant Reviewer
        
                                
          
          
          Disparity Impact Strategy
        
                                
          
          
          Data and Evaluation

                                                                        Population Profiles

                                                                        Black/African American

                                                                        Population Health Data
        
                                
          
          
          Pathfinder to Resources
        
                                
          
          
          American Indian and Alaska Native

                                                                        Population Health Data
        
                                
          
          
          Center for Indigenous Innovation and Health Equity
        
                                
          
          
          Tribal Affairs
        
                                
          
          
          Pathfinder to Resources
        
                                
          
          
          Asian American

                                                                        Population Health Data
        
                                
          
          
          Past and Present: Addressing Racism and Intolerance Against Asian Americans Virtual Panel
        
                                
          
          
          Pathfinder to Resources
        
                                
          
          
          Hispanic/Latino

                                                                        Population Health Data
        
                                
          
          
          Pathfinder to Resources
        
                                
          
          
          Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander

                                                                        Population Health Data
        
                                
          
          
          NHPI National Health Interview Survey
        
                                
          
          
          Center for Indigenous Innovation and Health Equity
        
                                
          
          
          Pathfinder to Resources
        
                                
          
          
          Data Collection Standards

                                                                        Final Standards
        
                                
          
          
          Implementation Guidance
        
                                
          
          
          Explanation of the Standards
        
                                
          
          
          Improving Data Collection for the LGBTQIA+ Community
        
                                
          
          
          Tools and Data Sets

                                                                        Healthy People 2020 Health Disparities Data Widget
        
                                
          
          
          Minority Health SVI
        
                                
          
          
          Compendium of Federal Data Sets Addressing Health Disparities*
        
                                
          
          
          Evaluation Resources
        
                                
          
          
          Resource Center

                                                                        Knowledge Center

                                                                        Online Catalog
        
                                
          
          
          Library Acquisitions
        
                                
          
          
          Health Disparities Bibliography
        
                                
          
          
          Pathfinders

                                                                        Black/African American Pathfinder to Resources
        
                                
          
          
          American Indian and Alaska Native Pathfinder to Resources
        
                                
          
          
          Asian American Pathfinder to Resources
        
                                
          
          
          Hispanic/Latino Pathfinder to Resources
        
                                
          
          
          Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Pathfinder to Resources
        
                                
          
          
          Funding Search Request
        
                                
          
          
          Resources

                                                                        OMH’s Justice and Health Initiatives
        
                                
          
          
          HIV/AIDS and PrEP Resources
        
                                
          
          
          Reentry Resources
        
                                
          
          
          Trauma Resources
        
                                
          
          
          Publications & Reports

                                                                        HHS Strategic Plans

                                                                        HHS Action Plan to Reduce Racial & Ethnic Health Disparities
        
                                
          
          
          2020 Update on the Action Plan to Reduce Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities
        
                                
          
          
          Data Briefs
        
                                
          
          
          Report to Congress
        
                                
          
          
          About OMH

                                                                        Contact Us
        
                                
          
          
          News

                                                                        Press Releases
        
                                
          
          
          Blog for Health Equity
        
                                
          
          
          Newsletters
        
                                
          
          
          OMH Organization

                                                                        Leadership

                                                                        RDML Felicia Collins, MD, MPH, FAAP, Director, Office of Minority Health
        
                                
          
          
          CAPT Tarsha Cavanaugh, Principal Deputy Director
        
                                
          
          
          Roslyn Holliday Moore, Deputy Director for Programs
        
                                
          
          
          Paul Rodriguez
        
                                
          
          
          Carmeyia Gillis, Director, Division of Information and Education
        
                                
          
          
          Juliet Bui, MPA, MSW, Director, Division of Policy and Data
        
                                
          
          
          Sonsiere Cobb-Souza, Director, Division of Program Operations
        
                                
          
          
          Regional Staff
        
                                
          
          
          Offices of Minority Health

                                                                        HHS OMH
        
                                
          
          
          State & Territorial OMH
        
                                
          
          
          Committees and Working Groups

                                                                        Advisory Committee on Minority Health

                                                                        Charter
        
                                
          
          
          Roster & Bios
        
                                
          
          
          Meetings
        
                                
          
          
          CIIHE Tribal Advisory Committee

                                                                        CIIHE NHPI Stakeholder Group
        
                                
          
          
          CIIHE TAC
        
                                
          
          
          CIIHE TAC Members
        
                                
          
          
          Interdepartmental Health Equity Collaborative

                                                                        Data Workgroup
        
                                
          
          
          Community Health Worker Workgroup
        
                                
          
          
          Data Workgroup Members
        
                                
          
          
          Data Workgroup Meetings
        
                                
          
          
          IHEC Members
        
                                
          
          
          Community Health Worker Workgroup Meetings Home
              OMH News
        Now Is the Time to Answer the Call

  Posted on April 14,  2015 by J. Nadine Gracia, MD, MSCE, Former  Deputy Assistant Secretary for Minority Health

At a commemorative  event two years ago, I heard a historian say that history is not a steady  stream of events, but rather a series of punctuation points, like ripples from  stones tossed into water.  I believe that  we are at the cusp of just such a punctuation point today as we commemorate National  Minority Health Month and the 30th anniversary of the landmark *Report of the Secretary’s Task Force on Black and  Minority Health* (also known as the *Heckler Report*).  The *Heckler Report* marked the first time the  U.S. government convened a group of health experts to conduct a comprehensive  study of the health status of minorities.  This legacy health equity tome elevated  minority health onto a national stage and continues to serve as a driving force  for the monumental changes in research, policies, programs and legislation to end  health disparities in America.Over the past 30 years, the  influence of the *Heckler Report* has  advanced our nation’s progress toward health equity through new techniques in  data collection; dedicated institutes, centers, offices, and commissions of  minority health across the country; innovative community-level interventions  and transformative legislative measures.  These advances reflect the vision of former U.S.  Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Margaret M. Heckler  who, in 1985, determined that we must act swiftly to address the excess deaths  among racial and ethnic minorities and the health inequity that plagued our  country.  In her words, health  disparities were “an affront both to our ideals and to the ongoing genius of  American medicine.”Secretary Heckler, members of  the Task Force that was convened to develop the report and other visionaries had  an unwavering commitment and a heart of service to enact change.  And with that commitment came a tremendous  opportunity. The *Heckler Report* created an opportunity to  engage the nation in thoughtful discussions about the health needs of minority  communities. Individuals from across the nation – public health professionals  and health care providers to advocacy groups, researchers to academic  institutions and policymakers – began to ponder solutions to a dilemma that  required immediate scrutiny.As a  result, milestones began to line the path toward health equity: the Jackson Heart Study explored reasons for certain  cardiovascular health disparities;  the Healthy Start program brought infant mortality prevention efforts to underserved communities;  the National Standards for Culturally  and Linguistically Appropriate Services in Health and Health Care gave guidance on how health care  organizations can provide respectful and responsive services to diverse  communities; and an HHS mandate reaffirmed the commitment to the appropriate  inclusion of data on minority groups in HHS research, services and related activities.And, nearly  a generation after the *Heckler Report,* the pivotal Affordable Care Act and its key tenet of quality, affordable  and accessible health care is touching the lives of Americans every day. When  President Obama signed this powerful legislation into law five years ago, it  opened up a remarkable window of opportunity in the movement to reduce health  disparities and achieve health equity.   The Affordable Care Act is expanding access to  coverage with approximately 16.4 million uninsured people having gained health  coverage since March 2010.  The law is  also expanding access to primary health care through investments in community  health centers; increasing the diversity of the nation’s health workforce;  strengthening the federal minority health infrastructure to reduce health  disparities by establishing Offices of Minority Health within six HHS agencies  and elevating the National Center on Minority Health and Health Disparities to  a NIH Institute; ensuring individuals are protected from discrimination in  health care; and improving data collection and research on health disparities.The Affordable Care Act and the health disparity gaps  that have been reduced since the *Heckler  Report* are signs of progress: cancer deaths among blacks have decreased;  HIV mortality rates in black communities have declined; obesity rates among low-income preschoolers have declined for the first time in three  decades; childhood vaccination disparities between racial and ethnic minorities  and whites are nearly nonexistent; and teen pregnancy among  black, Hispanic, American Indian/Alaska Native and Asian American and Pacific  Islander populations have shown recent declines, as has infant mortality among mothers of all ages in  these racial and ethnic minority groups.But, we  recognize that health and health care is only one piece of the puzzle. We must  also look to the conditions in which individuals live, learn, work and play –  the social determinants of health – to help solve the health disparities issue that  afflicts so many Americans. To this end, we rely on the *HHS  Action Plan to Reduce Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities* and the *National Partnership for Action to End Health Disparities*to both guide our  path and mobilize our communities toward health equity; to set goals for  workforce development and other determinants and help racial and ethnic  minorities reach their full health potential.Our work  is not done. We are still a nation where minorities are less likely to get the  preventive care needed to stay healthy, less likely to receive quality care,  and more likely to face poorer health outcomes. The death rate among racial and ethnic minorities has decreased  since 1985, but minorities still face the grim reality of dying due to  preventable illness in higher numbers than whites. These disparities persist, but there is hope.  We have ground-breaking developments in  science, transformative advances in public health and health care reform, and  new multi-sector collaborations at our disposal – opportunities that create an  environment ripe for action.Today, we are  standing before a remarkable moment to fulfill the American promise of equality  and opportunity.  And whether we rise to  meet it – whether we can look back another 30 years from now and consider this  period in history as the moment when we faced an unprecedented opportunity for  change, and made the most of it – depends on all of us to answer the call for ending  health disparities in our communities.Throughout  this banner 30th anniversary year, we will raise a clarion call to  continue to take action toward ending health disparities.  For some this means getting connected to care  for the first time, for others it means educating the next generation through  awareness raising activities.  Health  disparities impact us all and we all must do our part, and through our  collective efforts we can accelerate momentum toward achieving a nation free of  disparities in health and health care.J. Nadine Gracia, MD, MSCE, is the Former  Deputy Assistant Secretary for Minority Health and the Director of the Office of Minority Health at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Office of Minority Healthfacebooktwitterinstagramyoutube

  info@minorityhealth.hhs.govToll Free: 1-800-444-6472Fax: 301-251-2160
      The mission of the Office of Minority Health is to improve the health of racial and ethnic minority populations through the development of health policies and programs that will help eliminate health disparities.

  OMH Home
                                      HHS Home
                                      USA.gov
                                      Disclaimer
                                      Privacy Policy
                                      Contact
                                      Contact Us
                                      HHS FOIA
                                      Accessibility
                                      Viewers & Players
                                      Vulnerability Disclosure Policy