Racial and ethnic inequities in health and health care impact individual well-being, contribute to millions of premature deaths, and cost the United States hundreds of billions of dollars annually. Addressing these inequities is vital to improving the health of the nation’s most disadvantaged communities—and will also help to achieve optimal health for all. In 2003, the Institute of Medicine examined these inequities in Unequal Treatment: Confronting Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Health Care.
Because disparities persist, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM) convened an expert committee to revisit its 2003 report. The committee’s report reviews the major drivers of health care disparities, provides insight into successful and unsuccessful interventions, identifies gaps in the evidence base, and makes recommendations to advance health equity. In a public release webinar, members of the committee will provide an overview of their report's key messages and recommendations and answer audience questions.