Truly Disturbing News

When I saw this article, I was nearly at a loss for words:Reuters AlertNet - Health care disparities kill 80,000 blacks-US study

Then I read this sentence: "In 2002, the Institute of Medicine, an independent group, reported that members of racial and ethnic minorities are given lower quality health care than whites even when they make as much money and carry the same insurance."

And it made me wonder, how can this be? Is this not the 21st Century? Is this not America, the greatest country in the world?

And am I myself getting lower quality health care, even though I am solidly middle class and have full health benefits? How does it happen? Does my doctor look at me and decide that he's not going to provide the same level of care that he does to his white patients?

I am finding all of this hard to believe. Then I read this: "Sociologist David Williams of the University of Michigan and colleagues reported in the same issue of Health Affairs that blacks had 30 percent higher death rates from cancer and heart disease than whites did in 2000. In 1950, blacks and whites were equally likely to die from heart disease and blacks had lower death rates from cancer."

This implies the disparity has GROWN WORSE since the '50's! I thought things were supposed to be "getting better"!

Something has to change. NOW.

More later...
Paul