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News Articles: African American health

Morris Brown, a primary care physician, listens to Sarah McCutcheon’s heartbeat in the exam room at his medical office in Kingstree, South Carolina, which sits in a region that suffers from health care provider shortages and high rates of chronic diseases.

Tagged as: 

  • Health

Black Americans still suffer worse health. Here's why there's so little progress

The United States has made almost no progress in closing racial health disparities despite promises, research shows. The government, some critics argue, is often the underlying culprit.

October 24, 2024
|
By:
  • Fred Clasen-Kelly and
  • Renuka Rayasam
The packaging on Kool brand's "non-menthol" cigarettes and its existing menthols are very similar. Anti-smoking activists argue this is a way to get around any ban on menthol cigarettes by appealing to consumers who like to smoke menthols.

Tagged as: 

  • Health

With a federal menthol ban looming, tobacco companies push 'non-menthol' substitutes

The alternatives have a similar taste, packaging and marketing. Anti-smoking activists say this is a way to get around state and federal bans.

March 21, 2024
|
By:
  • Yuki Noguchi
Left: A Kool cigarettes advertisement targeting Black communities for a sponsored event, the <em>Kool Jazz Festival</em>; Right: A Kent cigarettes ad targeting Black smokers.

Tagged as: 

  • Health

The fight over banning menthol cigarettes has a long history steeped in race

Black smokers make up menthol tobacco's largest market, and have the highest rates of lung cancer. But the fight over banning menthol is a complex and divisive issue in the Black community.

February 01, 2024
|
By:
  • Yuki Noguchi
Kimberley Seals Allers, was inspired to start Irth because of stories she heard from many mothers — as well as her own experience — of bias in the health care system during pregnancy and delivery.

Tagged as: 

  • Health

'Irth' hospital review app aims to take the bias out of giving birth

Founded by a Black mom, the app gathers reviews by and for people of color about their experience with the health care system during pregnancy and delivery.

October 16, 2023
|
By:
  • Andrea Muraskin
Dr. Mandy Cohen testifying before a congressional committee as a leader of  Medicare and Medicaid. More recently, the new director of the CDC headed North Carolina's health department.

Tagged as: 

  • Health

The painful pandemic lessons Mandy Cohen carries to the CDC

President Biden and others have lauded Mandy Cohen's pandemic leadership in North Carolina. Those in the state's most vulnerable communities tell a more nuanced story about the new CDC director.

August 23, 2023
|
By:
  • Fred Clasen-Kelly,
  • Rachana Pradhan,
  • and 1 more
Wanda Irving holds her granddaughter, Soleil, in front of a portrait of Soleil's mother, Shalon Irving, at her home in Sandy Springs, Ga., in 2017. Wanda is raising Soleil since Shalon died of complications due to hypertension a few weeks after giving birth.

Tagged as: 

  • Health

Maternal deaths in the U.S. spiked in 2021, CDC reports

After years of high rates, the country hit a new high during the pandemic, far exceeding rates in other developed nations. Black women are at especially high risk.

March 16, 2023
|
By:
  • Selena Simmons-Duffin and
  • Carmel Wroth
Cover of Running While Black byAlison Mariella Desir.

Tagged as: 

  • Health

'Running While Black' tells a new story about who belongs in the sport

In a new book, writer Alison Mariella Désir shares her journey into long distance running, reveals the hidden contributions of Black runners and calls for the sport to become more inclusive.

November 16, 2022
|
By:
  • Beandrea July
Penelope Wingard of Charlotte, N.C., has survived breast cancer, a brain aneurysm and surgery on both eyes. For the past eight years, she's also been battling tens of thousands of dollars in medical debt.

Tagged as: 

  • Health

Medical debt ruined her credit. 'It's like you're being punished for being sick'

New policies to keep medical bills from sinking credit ratings sound good but will likely fall short for many hit hardest by debt — especially Black Americans in the South, such as Penelope Wingard.

October 06, 2022
|
By:
  • Aneri Pattani
Women's health advocate Tanya Leake, photographed at her home on March 1, 2022. Leake founded numerous initiatives to help raise awareness about uterine fibroids after experiencing them herself.

Tagged as: 

  • Health

Facing invasive treatments for uterine fibroids, Black women advocate for better care

Black women are more likely to get the noncancerous growths, at a younger age, and have higher rates of hysterectomy. A growing movement calls for more compassionate care.

April 10, 2022
|
By:
  • Akilah Wise
(from left) Kevin Dedner founded Hurdle, a mental health startup that pairs patients with therapists. Ashlee Wisdom's company, Health in Her Hue, connects women of color with culturally sensitive medical providers. Nathan Pelzer's Clinify Health analyzes data to help doctors identify at-risk patients in underserved areas. Erica Plybeah's firm, MedHaul, arranges transport to medical appointments.

Tagged as: 

  • Health

How Black tech entrepreneurs are tackling health care's race gap

Determined to improve the way doctors connect with their patients, a new wave of innovators are using technology to match people of color with culturally competent professionals.

November 29, 2021
|
By:
  • Cara Anthony
Members of the Full Circle Everest team pose for a photo on Mount Rainier earlier this year. Next year, group members hope to become the first all-Black team to reach the top of Mount Everest.

Tagged as: 

  • World

A mountaineering group is aiming to be the 1st all-Black team to climb Mount Everest

The Full Circle Everest team will be scaling Everest next year in an attempt to make history. But it's not just about the climb. They also want to inspire Black people to explore the outdoors.

October 09, 2021
|
By:
  • Sharon Pruitt-Young
Evidence seized from a drug trafficking operation in central California in early 2020 included methamphetamine and fentanyl with a street value of $1.5 million, authorities said.

Tagged as: 

  • Health

Methamphetamine Deaths Soar, Hitting Black And Native Americans Especially Hard

Newly published U.S. data finds overdose deaths from methamphetamine use more than doubled in recent years. Use of the stimulant among Black Americans surged nearly tenfold.

September 23, 2021
|
By:
  • Brian Mann
New research shows racial disparities in opioid overdose rates, with the rate of deaths among Black people growing faster than in other groups. The researchers are calling for expanding access to drug treatment and to education on how to prevent overdoses using the antidote drug, naloxone.

Tagged as: 

  • Health

Black Opioid Deaths Increase Faster Than Whites, Spurring Calls For Treatment Equity

Black communities face a growing share of overdoses, but addiction treatment resources and attention are still focused on white communities.

September 11, 2021
|
By:
  • Marisa Peñaloza
Dr. Kristamarie Collman, a family physician in Orlando, has been dispelling vaccine myths through social media. She's among a growing cohort of Black doctors trying to reach vaccine-hesitant members of their communities.

Tagged as: 

  • Health

'You Can't Treat If You Can't Empathize': Black Doctors Tackle Vaccine Hesitancy

Black vaccine hesitancy goes back to history of distrust of medicine, say doctors and researchers. To help, it's important to empower people with knowledge to make their own choices.

January 19, 2021
|
By:
  • Pien Huang
Some in the medical community now question the use of race in kidney care. They argue it could exacerbate health disparities.

Tagged as: 

  • Health

Is It Time For A Race Reckoning In Kidney Medicine?

A movement sparked by medical students is pushing to eliminate the use of race to estimate kidney function, saying it reinforces racist thinking. Some argue the change could cause unintended harm.

December 29, 2020
|
By:
  • Maria Godoy
  • Load More

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