Marginalized communities struggles for equitable Healthcare

By Marcos Diaz

Healthcare disparities, and accessibility have been a major issue which has hurt marginalized communities massively, while racism itself must be addressed as a leading cause we must also address other factors of healthcare inequities, and enhance accessibility. the diversification of the healthcare workforce, and concerted measures to eradicate racial biases within healthcare organizations. Furthermore, developing a more equitable healthcare system requires addressing the socioeconomic determinants of health, such as homelessness and poverty.

According to Vanessa Gamble’s article, “‘There Wasn’t A Lot of Comforts in Those Days:’ African Americans, Public Health, and the 1918 Influenza Epidemic,” institutional racism and historical neglect were major factors in the disparity in health outcomes. During the 1918 influenza pandemic, rather than taking into account the underlying social contributors of poor health, and increased death rates among African Americans they were “mistakenly” attributed to genetic inferiority. This false belief supported racial prejudice, and provided an excuse for the disregard for African American communities. This is a long standing trend even seen very recently as specifically African American women are disregarded during childbirth studies have shown the maternal mortality rate is 3 times higher for women of color than white women according to the CDC. They attribute this to the same issues that were prevalent in 1918.

Health outcomes are greatly impacted by socioeconomic variables such as income, housing, and restricted access to healthcare, and education. Gamble highlights how historically, African Americans’ access to healthcare institutions has been hampered by prejudice, and a long standing economic disparity. In order to address these issues, African Americans were forced to create their own healthcare resources like midwives, holistic healing, and traditional remedies, even now these methods of healing circulate marginalized communities as healthcare has not become widely accessible or affordable. In order to attain health equity, it is critical to address the underlying, and historical causes of the socioeconomic gaps that exist, and continue to contribute to health inequity. 

The authors of the paper “Reparations as a Public Health Priority — A Strategy for Ending Black-White Health Disparities,” Mary T. Bassett, and Sandro Galea, support reparations as a first step in resolving racial health inequalities. They say that through giving African American communities access to more financial resources for better healthcare, education, and economic opportunities, reparations can aid in the correction of historical injustices. The goal of this strategy is to improve general well-being, and close the health gap which is intertwined with America’s history . This Segway into my next point as a key step into equitable healthcare is diversifying the healthcare workforce. It is essential to reducing racial biases, and improving healthcare outcomes for marginalized communities. A more varied workforce is better able to provide care that is sensitive to cultural differences, and comprehend/sympathize with the particular difficulties that certain groups experience. 

The historical, and current causes of health disparities must be addressed in order to build a more fair healthcare system. In order to remedy past injustices, and shape the future for a more fair and accessible America. This entails addressing racism, but more than that enhancing socioeconomic circumstances, diversifying the healthcare system, and exploring the possibility of reparations. By taking a comprehensive approach, we can work toward a time where everyone has equitable access to high-quality healthcare. The opportunity to pursue happiness for marginalized communities can only be done once basic necessities such as healthcare, and security are finally achievable for said communities until then America has failed its citizens .

-Working together to reduce Black Maternal Mortality (2024) Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Available at: https://www.cdc.gov/healthequity/features/maternal-mortality/index.html (Accessed: 23 May 2024). 

– Gamble, Vanessa Northington. 2010. “There Wasn’t A Lot of Comforts in Those

Days:” African Americans, Public Health, and the 1918 Influenza Epidemic.”

Public Health Reports. 

– Basset, Mary T. and Sandro Galea. 2020. “Reparations as a Public Health

Priority — A Strategy for Ending Black-White Health Disparities.” New England

Journal of Medicine.