Men Of Color Face Health Crisis.

Because men from racial and ethnic minority populations face such a high risk of heart disease, diabetes, HIV/AIDS, and other conditions and often lack access to basic care, they are now experiencing a health care crisis, according to a report released today by Community Voices: HealthCare for the Underserved. There is a growing urgency to recognize and to stem this crisis as the diversity of our nation continues to expand. Unless action is taken soon, the crisis, and attendant financial implications related to treating large numbers of men living in poverty, will grow.

The report, A Poor Man’s Plight: Uncovering the Disparity in Men’s Health, examines the health status of Black, Hispanic, Asian/Pacific Islander, Native American, and mixed race men and identifies strategies that can reduce this alarming health gap. Authored by Dr. John Rich of the Boston Public Health Commission and Dr. Marguerite Ro of Columbia University, the report finds that men of color are overall less likely to have health insurance and less likely to access health care services than their White counterparts. Moreover, the report finds, men of color disproportionately lack access to much-needed mental health, substance abuse, and oral health services. A Poor Man’s Plight: Uncovering the Disparity in Men’s Health also offers insight into health issues that adversely impact minority communities:

* On average, African Americans, Latinos, Native Americans, and Native Hawaiians are nearly twice as likely to have diabetes as non-Hispanic Whites of similar age.

* HIV/AIDS is the second leading cause of death for African American men between the ages of 25 and 44 and the third leading cause of death for Latino men in the same age group.

* Men of color suffer higher rates of preventable illness, such as sexually transmitted diseases. This is particularly the case for African American and Latino men who have rates of gonorrhea, chlamydia, syphilis and herpes infection that are higher than for other men of color and much higher than White men.

* In 1998, men of color accounted for 70% of deaths by homicide in the U.S. Homicide is the leading cause of death for African American men between the ages of 15 and 34 and the second leading cause of death for Latino men in the same age group.

“Policymakers and health care providers fail to focus on how to combat the excessive and unacceptable levels of morbidity and mortality that plague the lives of poor men and men of color,” says Dr. Henrie Treadwell, Program Director, W.K. Kellogg Foundation. “This report acknowledges the historical, social, and political factors that have blocked access to care for men of color and provides us a roadmap to move forward in addressing the needs of this vulnerable population.”

A Poor Man’s Plight: Uncovering the Disparity in Men’s Health outlines 12 policy strategies to overcome obstacles that men of color face in accessing appropriate health care. These recommendations include:

* Expand health insurance coverage for men of color;
* Establish enhanced points of entry into health care for men of color;
* Increase the availability of community-based screening and services for men of color and increase outreach to men of color;
* Build a culturally competent workforce;
* Expand research and data collection on the health of men of color;
* Develop community coalitions of health, public health and social service providers who serve men of color; and
* Develop national, state, and local policy agendas for the health of men of color.

For more information at http://www.communityvoices.org