Over the past two years, a hypertension equity program has reduced readmissions and maternal morbidity among patients at Providence, R.I.-based Women & Infants Hospital. Now, the hospital is partnering to expand the program statewide. 

Minneapolis-based Fairview Health Services has launched a new program aimed at reducing diet-related health disparities.

Health disparities among Medicare Advantage patients in rural areas widened in 2023, a new CMS report shows.

Los Angeles-based Cedars-Sinai is handing out $20 million in grants this fiscal year to local nonprofits to promote health equity in homelessness and housing, access to care and community response, the health system confirmed to Becker's.

Health equity is a massive topic for hospitals to address, with hundreds of avenues that can be taken in confronting the issue. It's no wonder many leaders are often overwhelmed and unsure where to begin. 

Health systems across the nation are working to improve health equity for patients, but many systems approach the issue with an outcomes-focused lens, which may actually make equity harder to achieve.

Between 34.6% and 50.7% of Medicare beneficiaries with modest incomes may lack sufficient to cover a hospital stay out of pocket, according to a study published Oct. 29 in Annals of Internal Medicine. 

The Biden administration will allocate nearly $9 million in grants aimed at improving women's health access in 14 states and Washington, D.C. 

The Association of American Medical Colleges has awarded UChicago Medicine and the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine with the 2024 Spencer Foreman Award for Outstanding Community Engagement. 

To fill operating rooms and financial incentives, obstetricians are often performing unneeded cesarean sections on Black women, according to researchers who analyzed about 1 million births across 68 New Jersey hospitals. 

Black Directors Health Equity Agenda, a Chicago-based coalition of Black board directors, seeks to address health disparities in public hospitals and community health centers with a $1.5 million grant from Kaiser Permanente.

In just three years, NYC Health + Hospitals has addressed the social needs of more than 25,000 patients through its community health workers program. 

Changes to eliminate race-based criteria from the kidney transplant list have benefited Black candidates, Medscape reported Aug. 26.

Cleveland Clinic is being accused of illegally discriminating based on race by operating a program to prevent and treat strokes in minority patients, The Wall Street Journal reported Aug. 14.

Northwestern Medicine has distributed $16.3 million in grants to more than 300 local agencies in Illinois this year to address healthcare disparities identified in community health needs assessments. 

The American Hospital Association has recognized Boston Medical Center as the 2024 recipient of its Foster G. McGaw Prize for Excellence in Community Service.

Healthcare systems are uniquely positioned to identify nonmedical needs and collaborate with community partners to get those needs met, Airica Steed, EdD, RN, president and CEO of Cleveland-based MetroHealth System, told Becker's.

Kenyatta Casimir and her partner were thrilled when they found out they were pregnant—but as a Black woman, Kenyatta also felt concern. She was keenly aware that her risk of experiencing pregnancy-related complications was high. It didn’t matter that she was young, healthy, and informed. She knew that for her, having a baby in the U.S. - and in her case, twins - was a risk. Her chances of being dismissed or mistreated by her doctor and care team were high and the possibility of being referred to a specialist if needed was lower than others. 

Tampa (Fla.) General Hospital will launch a new organ transplant program in late 2024 aimed at reducing healthcare disparities faced by Black patients, ABC affiliate WFTS reported July 9.

Recent decades have marked significant strides in women’s health, with key advancements in preventive care guidelines, diagnoses, and treatments, as well as in clinical and social research. However, far more progress is needed along multiple dimensions as women continue to face serious health disparities and lack of access to timely and high-quality care.