Be the Source of Better Health! Improving Health Outcomes Through Our Cultures, Communities, and Connections

This April, celebrate National Minority Health Month (NMHM) by being the source of better health. NMHM is a time to raise awareness of the importance of improving the health of people in racial and ethnic minority communities. This year’s theme focuses on understanding how our cultures, communities, and connections impact our overall health. Learn more about social determinants of health (SDOH) and take action within your communities to Be the Source for Better Health!

CDC recognizes NMHM as an opportunity to bring attention to health inequities and what we are doing address health disparities. A March 2024 Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report shows how social and economic conditions impact health and health care in the U.S. Understanding disparities in SDOH and health-related social needs among populations is essential to determining strategies toward advancing health equity.

CDC’s Office of Health Equity (OHE) launched a webinar series featuring topics that address emerging public health issues, health equity research, communication, and training. This series showcases the power of partnerships to help reduce health disparities and advance health equity. Through the webinar series, we have shared best practices to improve health equity communication materials, practical applications from the Principles of Health Equity Science for Public Health Action, and explain the importance of equitable data practices for various population demographics.

Everyone can play a role in reducing health disparities. A few key highlights from the series:

• “Deploying culturally and linguistically appropriate information to Latino communities through multimedia channels” has helped inform communities, build trust and confidence in vaccines, fight misinformation, and increase vaccine access in Latino communities.
• “Disability is an intersectional issue that affects all communities, including already marginalized communities, and has the power to unite diverse identities and lived experiences.”
• “Equity in health communications goes beyond translating documents into multiple languages. [It includes] making sure that content is culturally and linguistically appropriate and relevant for the focus population and scripted in a language or format that is relevant and relatable [which] is sometimes missed if we don’t have the right voices at the table.”

Read more about these highlights in the Conversations in Equity blogs. 

Launched in 2021, CORE is CDC’s umbrella framework to transform our work by incorporating health equity and diversity, equity, inclusion, accessibility, and belonging as a foundational element across all of its work and partnerships. CORE demonstrates how we’ve put Health Equity in Action through collaboration with communities and partners to improve health outcomes. Learn about more accomplishments on a new webpage highlighting the progress and impact CDC has made in advancing the science and practice of health equity.