Minority Health Improvement and Health Disparity Elimination Act

Bill: 110-s-1576
Sponsor: Sen. Kennedy, Edward M. [D-MA]
Introduced: 2007-06-07 in the Senate
Policy area: Health
Subjects: Access to health care
Arkansas
Civil Rights and Liberties, Minority Issues
Communication in medicine
Conferences
Department of Health and Human Services
Discrimination in medical care
Drugs
Economics and Public Finance
Education
Environmental Protection
Environmental health
Epidemiology
Executive reorganization
Federal advisory bodies
Federal aid to health facilities
Federal aid to research
Genetic counseling
Genetic research
Genetics
Government Operations and Politics
Government publicity
Governmental investigations
Health education
Health information systems
Health planning
Health services administration
Health surveys
Higher education
Illinois
Indian medical care
Internet
Kentucky
Louisiana
Medical education
Medical ethics
Medical research
Medical statistics
Medical tests
Minorities
Minorities in medicine
Minority education
Minority health
Mississippi
Missouri
National Institutes of Health (NIH)
Pharmaceutical research
Preventive medicine
Quality of care
Research centers
Science, Technology, Communications
Tennessee

Summary:
action_date: 2007-06-07
text: 
Minority Health Improvement and Health Disparity Elimination Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Secretary of Health and Human Services to: (1) develop an Internet Clearinghouse within the Office of Minority Health; (2) provide for programs of excellence in health professions education for underrepresented minorities; and (3) support demonstration projects designed to improve the health and health care of racial and ethnic minority groups through improved access to health care, patient navigators, primary prevention activities, health promotion and disease prevention activities, and health literacy education and services.

Provides for grants to: (1) promote positive health behaviors; (2) implement culturally and linguistically appropriate, evidence-based, and community-driven sustainable strategies to eliminate racial and ethnic health and health care disparities; (3) implement systems of primary care practices to eliminate disparities in the delivery of health care and improve the health care provided to all patients; and (4) address long-standing unmet health needs in the Mississippi Delta. 

Requires the Secretary to establish the Health Action Zone Initiative demonstration program to support comprehensive state, tribal, or local initiatives to improve the health of racial and ethnic minority groups.

Provides for research to improve the health of racial and ethnic minority groups.

Requires the Secretary to ensure the collection of data from federally conducted or supported health programs by race, ethnicity, geographic location, socioeconomic position, primary language, and, when practicable, health literacy.

Sets forth duties for the Office of Minority Health. Requires the Secretary to establish the Advisory Committee on Minority Health.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2007-06-07
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
action_date: 2007-06-07
text: Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR S7350)
action_date: 2007-06-07
text: Introduced in Senate