Researchers and black physicians say this is due in large part to deep-seated suspicions of palliative care, according to the report. Historically, hospitals displayed “No Negroes” signs, involuntarily sterilized black women and even left black men untreated for syphilis, causing deep-seated distrust of the healthcare system. One woman told The New York Times that hospice has only been good for African Americans receiving care in primarily white facilities, and another added that treatment is better in those facilities but discrimination persists.
For many black families who have had to fight for access to quality medical care, federal requirements to give up life-sustaining medical services for hospice benefits may raise suspicions, the report notes.
Many medical and religious leaders in the black community have now set out to help address these concerns and provide counterviews of end-of-life discussions and palliative care and hospitals are asking black families with positive hospice experiences to share those with others and spread the word, according to the report.
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