April is National Minority Health Month!

During April, we mark National Minority Health Month by raising awareness about the health disparities that continue to affect minority populations. This year's theme, Prevention is Power: Taking Action for Health Equity emphasizes the critical role of prevention in reducing health disparities.

On April 21, Dr. Leandris Liburd, CDC’s Associate Director for Minority Health and Health Equity, will join with Dr. Jonca Bull, Director of the FDA Office of Minority Health, to present a webinar on Advancing the Health, Safety and Wellbeing of the American People.

CDC supports several activities as part of the HHS Action Plan to Reduce Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities. Some of these activities include:

Million Hearts

In collaboration with Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), CDC is leading the HHS-wide "Million Hearts Initiative" to enhance community and clinical interventions to prevent cardiovascular disease (CVD) and stroke among all Americans, including minority populations at greater risk for CVD.

Million Hearts has key minority serving organization partners such as the Association of Black Cardiologists, the National Alliance for Hispanic Health, and the South Asian Heart Center. In August 2013, CDC launched the Hypertension Control Challenge to recognize and reward high performing clinicians and health systems around blood pressure control.

For more information, see the following:
• HHS Million Hearts Initiative at CDC
  • CDC Features: February is American Heart Month

Childhood Obesity Research Demonstration (CORD) Project

In the United States, rates of childhood obesity are high overall, but for minority and low-income communities, they are even higher.

The Childhood Obesity Research Demonstration (CORD) Project seeks to determine whether coordinated approaches in the community that support healthy behaviors, including improving: the healthy eating and physical activity opportunities where children spend time, parenting skills, and utilization of preventive services can improve underserved children’s health. Based on an integrated systems model of primary care and public health, CORD includes four key components: health care systems and organizations, community health workers, child care (early care and education centers including Head Start) and schools, and communities. CORD sites include communities with a high proportion of children aged 2–12 years who are eligible for the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), which provides low-cost health insurance to more than 7 million children from working families .

For more information, see the following:

Overweight & Obesity

• Childhood Obesity Research Demonstration (CORD) Project
• Addressing Obesity Disparities
• Center Training & Research Translation (TRT), CDC/DNPAO Health Equity Toolkit

CDC Undergraduate Public Health Scholars (CUPS) Program

CDC supports internship opportunities for qualified undergraduate and graduate students to gain meaningful experiences in public health settings: The CDC Undergraduate Public Health Scholars (CUPS) program, consists of five internship opportunities that expose undergraduate students interested in minority health to the field of public health research and practice by providing hands-on, project-oriented assignments. It is expected that this exposure to public health programs will heighten interns’ awareness of and interest in public health careers. The Dr. James A. Ferguson Emerging Infectious Diseases Fellowship Program is a professional development program that provides hands-on experience for graduate students in medical, dental, veterinary, pharmacy, and public health master’s-level graduate programs.

Reducing Influenza Vaccine Disparities

Through Grassroots Communication and Social Marketing to Promote Influenza Immunization to Disparate Populations, CDC builds partnerships at the grassroots level and across private and public sectors.

The National Influenza Vaccination Disparities Partnership (NIVDP), supported by CDC, is comprised of multi-sector partners working to promote vaccination among underserved populations including African Americans, Hispanics, and American Indians/Alaska Natives.

The primary goal is to develop long-term partners and promote cross collaboration between community leaders, private sector organizations (e.g., pharmacy chains and health plans), and public sector organizations (medical associations, community-based organizations, and state and local public health departments) to help reduce the impact of influenza among Hispanic, African American, and American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) populations.

For more information, see the following:
• Vaccines & Immunizations
• Seasonal Influenza (Flu)
  • Flu Prevention Toolkit in Spanish
  • Print Materials
    • Native Americans & Alaska Natives
    • Spanish Language
  • People at High Risk of Developing Flu-Related Complications

Reduce Tobacco Disparities

CDC continues to partner with states and other grantees to work on reducing tobacco use among racial and ethnic minorities. In 2013, CDC funded eight National Networks to assist states and communities to identify populations vulnerable to tobacco use and implement best practices for reducing tobacco-related disparities. Four of the eight National Networks will serve four racial and ethnic minority groups (i.e., African Americans, American Indians/Alaska Natives, Asians/Pacific Islanders, and Hispanics). In April 2013, CDC launched a new advertising campaign featuring smoking-related health conditions affecting particular racial and ethnic minority population groups (e.g., African Americans, American Indians/Alaska Natives and Hispanics).

For more information, see the following:
• National Tobacco Control Program (NTCP), Tobacco Control & National Networks
  • Media Campaign Resource Center (MCRC)
• Tips from Former Smokers 2013 Campaign
• Winnable Battles - Tobacco Use
• Vital Signs – Adult Smoking, Focusing on People with Mental Illness
• Vital Signs - Adult Smoking in the U.S.

• Cancer
  • Division of Cancer Prevention & Control (DCPC)
    • National Breast & Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program (NBCCEDP)
    • Vital Signs: Breast Cancer
• Community Health
  • Division of Community Health (DCH)
    • Racial & Ethnic Approaches to Community Health Across the US (REACH US)

• Diabetes
  • Diabetes Public Health Resource (DPHR)
    • National Diabetes Education Program (NDEP)
    • National Program to Eliminate Diabetes Related Disparities in Vulnerable Populations
    • Native Diabetes Wellness Program
    • Vision Health Initiative (VHI)
• Disability
  • National Center on Birth Defects & Developmental Disabilities (NCBDDD)
    • Birth Defects & Developmental Disabilities
      • Spina Bifida
      • Spina Bifida in Spanish
      • Child Development: It’s Better to Know / Desarrollo Infantil: Es Mejor Saber Spanish-language video on Tracking Child's Developmental Milestones
    
    • Disabiltiy & Health
      • Disabiltiy & Health Data System (DHDS)
      • Disability & Health, Health Care Data & Statistics
      • Public Health Grand Rounds: Where in health is disability: Public health practices to include people with disabilities
• Environmental Justice & Healthy Homes
  
• HIV/AIDS
  • Division of HIV/AIDS Prevention (DHAP)
    • Expanded Testing Initiative
    • Take Charge. Take the Test
    • HIV Among Latinos
• Injury & Violence Prevention & Control
  • National Center for Injury Prevention & Control (NCIPC)
    • Youth Violence Prevention
    • Teen Dating Violence Prevention
    • Native American Road Safety
    • Vital Signs: Child Passenger Safety
• National Prevention Strategy
  Elimination of Health Disparities focus area, and ways in which the health sector is working with other sectors to address health disparities:
  
  • Recommendations for Elimination of Health Disparities among national, state, and local partners.
  • CDC Feature: NPS: America's Plan for Better Health & Wellness

• Sickle Cell Disease (SCD)
  • Division of Blood Disorders (DBD)
    • National Resource Directory
    • Free Materials
• Teen Pregnancy
  • Division of Reproductive Health (DRH)
    • Teen Pregnancy Prevention Initiative (TPPI)
• Tuberculosis (TB)
  • Division of Tuberculosis Elimination (DTBE)
    • Tuberculosis (TB) Patient and General Public Materials
    • Tuberculosis (TB) in the African American Community
    • Tuberculosis (TB) Spanish Materials

Prevention is Power: Taking Action for Health Equity

Kick Off Week!
• White House Presidential Proclamation - National Minority Health Month 2014
• HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius Statement on National Minority Health Month, 2014
• A Message from the OMH Director - Celebrating National Minority Health Month 2014
• Register Your Event!

Week 2 - Transforming Health Care!
• National Public Health Week April 7-13, 2014
• Webinar: Health Coverage and Access to Care
• 3rd Anniversary Event - HHS NPA & Action Plan

Week 3 - Strengthen the Nation's Health and Human Services Workforce!
• Webinar: Workforce
• Let's Talk Prevention Twitter Relay #NMHM14Relay
  April 16, 2014, Wednesday, 12-2pm EST

Week 4 - Advance the Health, Safety, and Well-Being of the American People!
• Webinar: Clearing the Air: Reducing Tobacco Use among Racial and Ethnic Minorities
  Dr. Leandris Liburd, CDC Associate Director for Minority Health Dr. Jonca Bull, Director, OMH, U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA)
  2:00pm, Monday, April 21, 2014
  
• Webinar: National Partnership for Action (NPA)
  Making the Grade: The Southeastern Health Equity Report Card
  2:00pm, Wednesday, April 23, 2014

Week 5 - Advance Scientific Knowledge and Innovation!
• Webinar: Research & Data
• 11th Annual National Leadership Summit on Health Disparities Innovation Towards Reducing Disparities National Minority Quality Forum, April 28-29, 2014

For More Information
• Tweets & Facebook Posts
• Disparities Reduction Efforts
• Offices of Minority Health
• HHS Action Plan to Reduce Racial & Ethnic Health Disparities
• National Stakeholder Strategy for Achieving Health Equity
• NPA Engagement ToolKit for Community Action

• CDC Office of Minority Health & Health Equity (OMHHE)
• CDC Health Disparities & Inequalities Report (CHDIR)
• Farmworker Health
• Women's Health
• Tribal Support
• Social Determinants of Health (SDH) Resources
• Healthy People 2020: New Social Determinants of Health Topic Area
• HHS OMH Minority Health Month
  • HHS National Partnership for Action (NPA)
• AHRQ National Healthcare Disparities Report
• Institute of Medicine (IOM), Roundtable on the Promotion of Health Equity and the Elimination of Health Disparities
  • Related Report: Leveraging Culture to Address Health Inequalities: Examples from Native Communities (Workshop Summary)
• Applying Social Determinants of Health to Public Practice (Public Health Reports Supplement)
• Pandemic Influenza & Vulnerable Populations (AJPH Supplement)