The Maryland

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• The Maryland
• Health Disparities Initiative

MARYLAND DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND MENTAL HYGIENE
DR. CARLESSIA A. HUSSEIN NATIONAL SUMMIT ON
HEALTH DISPARITIES April 27, 2005 The National
Minority Health Month Foundation
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Maryland

• Facing a health care crisis within racial and
  ethnic communities
• State legislators and the administration have
  stepped forward to take action
• All Marylanders are being engaged to play an
  important and critical role

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Historic Perspective

• 1895 Booker T. Washington at Atlanta Exposition
  Meeting
• 1899 W.E.B. Dubois The Philadelphia Negro A
  Social Study
• 1903 W.E.B. Dubois Souls of Black Folk

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Historic Perspective (continued)

• 1968 Kerner Commission Report
• 1976 National Medical Association
• 1980 Black Congress on Health Law and Economics
• 1985 Report of the HHS Secretarys Task Force
  on Black and Minority Health (Heckler-Malone)

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Historic Perspective (continued)

• 1999 IOM Report Unequal Burden of Cancer,
  Alfred Haynes Brian Smedley, Editors
• 2002 IOM Report Confronting Racial and Ethnic
  Disparities in Health Care
• 2004 The first National Healthcare Disparities
  Report, AHRQ

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Historic Perspective (continued)

• 2004 Missing Persons Minorities in the Health
  Professions, Sullivan Commission
• 2004 A State Policy Agenda to Eliminate Racial
  and Ethnic Health Disparities, The Commonwealth
  Fund
• 2005 The Second National Healthcare Disparities
  Report, AHRQ

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Marylands Population
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Heart Disease Mortality Disparity
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Cancer Mortality Disparity
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Marylands History

• 1987 Now is the Time Action Agenda for
  Improving Black and Minority Health Maryland
  Governors Commission
• 1993 Health Maryland 2000 Volume 1
• 1994 Office of Minority Health
• 1996 Health Maryland 2000 Volume 2

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Marylands History (continued)

• 1999 Healthy Maryland 2010 Project
• 2001 Maryland Health Improvement Plan
• 2002 Healthy Maryland Chartbook

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Legislative Actions

• Honorable Shirley Nathan Pulliam House of
  Delegates, Co-Sponsored HB 86 and HB 883
• Delegate Nathan-Pulliam, chairs Subcommittee on
  Minority Health and health Disparities (2004)
• 2002 Senate Bill 451 the Maryland Health Care
  Foundation
• 2003 House Bill 883 the Health Services
  Disparities Prevention Act
• 2004 House Bill 86, Office of Minority Health and
  Health Disparities

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HOUSE BILL 86Mandated Provisions

• Established the Office of Minority Health and
  Health Disparities within office of Health
  Secretary
• Launched a website, www.mdhealthdisparities.org
• Develop a strategic plan to eliminate health
  disparities among ethnic and racial
• Collect, analyze and present health disparities
  data

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HOUSE BILL 86Mandated Provisions (continued)

• Serve as a clearinghouse and resource library
• Provide grants to community-based minority
  groups, HBCUs and other organizations to reduce
  disparities
• Review existing laws and regulations to ensure
  that they facilitate adequate health services to
  minorities

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HOUSE BILL 86Mandated Provisions (continued)

• Develop effective means for providing outreach to
  racial and ethnic minorities
• Establish statewide alliances with existing
  groups to form a statewide collaborative and
  network
• Work with academic institutions to develop
  courses with cultural competence and to implement
  such courses statewide

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Health Disparities InitiativeProgress To Date

• Held the First Annual Maryland Health Disparities
  Conference on June 8, 2004
• Organized the Second Maryland Health Disparities
  Conference for May 3, 2005
• Launched a website, www.mdhealthdisparities.org
  in May, 2004

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Progress To Date (continued)

• Established 4 statewide committees to develop the
  Maryland Plan to Eliminate Health Disparities
• Build on the Cigarette Restitution Fund Programs
  Best Practice model for reducing cancer mortality
  disparities between Whites and minorities
• Significant increases in the partnership between
  local health officers and minority
  community-based organizations working together to
  reduce cancer mortality and tobacco use among
  youth and adults

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Progress To Date (continued)

• Worked with and received support from the
  Legislative Black Caucus of Maryland
• Engaged key health leaders and organizations in
  the state to participate on the committees
• Hired an epidemiologist compiling health
  disparities data Health Disparities Chartbook
• Presented papers at the 2004 American Public
  Health Association meeting in Washington, D.C.

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Progress To Date (continued)

• Organized and coordinate National Public Health
  Week programs in 2004 and 2005
• Seeking federal and foundation funds submitted
  grant application in April, 2005 to NIH
  Disparities grant
• Planning a Departmental internal self-assessment
  of programs and resources for increasing the
  focus on reducing health disparities

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Progress To Date (continued)

• Held the first Departmental Native American
  Health Roundtable solicited input on health
  issues
• Consulting with leading health executives and
  advocacy groups seeking to collaborate with the
  Department
• Consulting with various federal agencies on
  collaborating with the States Health Disparities
  Initiative 

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Contacts in Maryland

• Arlee W. Gist
• Deputy Director
• Maryland Department of Health Mental Hygiene
• 201 West Preston Street, Room 502
• Baltimore, Maryland 21201
• 410-767-1052 agist_at_dhmh.state.md.us
• Carlessia A. Hussein, R.N., Dr. P.H.
• Director, Minority Health Health Disparities
• Maryland Department of Health Mental Hygiene
• 201 West Preston Street, Room 500
• Baltimore, Maryland 21201
• 410-767-7117 husseinc_at_dhmh.state.md.us
• www.mdhealthdisparities.org

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Closing Comment

• Over 100 Years of discussion and studies on
  disparities in health care, the window of
  opportunity is now open again with the IOM and
  other Reports. We cannot let it close without
  making a significant difference in reducing
  health disparities in Maryland.
• Delegate Shirley Nathan-Pulliam, RN, BSN, M.A.S.
• Maryland State Representative