The number of minority students entering medical school nationwide declined 8.4 percent in one year. At Harvard Medical School, the Class of 2002 comprises 200 medical and dental students, of which 18.7 percent are underrepresented minorities. Women Harvard Medical School has received a contract from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to establish a National Center of Excellence in Women's Health. Minority women have unique health concerns. Native women have shorter life expectancies and are less likely to receive adequate prenatal care than white women.
Black women have the highest rates of death from cerebrovascular disease.
While breast cancer death rates have declined among white women, they have increased for black women. American Indian, black, and Hispanic women have the highest rates of cervical cancer in the country.