History of Racial Inequity in Healthcare

In this module, we will structure and root our understanding of what race is and how it interacts with and affects all aspects of our society. To observe and understand inequities in the healthcare system, we must first have a basic understanding of concepts and definitions in the health equity literature, the origins of race, and how it came to be a ubiquitous part of modern society.

The purpose of this module’s lessons is to understand specific events that contributed to the disproportionate disease burden seen in certain communities, and illustrate why health disparities, and in turn, healthcare disparities, exist by race.

In this module, we will learn about the history of health insurance in the United States. The US health insurance system is complex and can vary based on your location, age, ability status, and for some groups, your identity. Understanding these differences helps shed light on how health insurance plays a role in health inequity and, specifically, racial health inequity.

In this module, we will explore how the lack of access and representation in various sectors has had an impact on healthcare equity. By illustrating exclusion and discrimination in other sectors of society, we can better see the same parallels that are observed in healthcare and how exclusionary practices outside of healthcare contribute to health disparities and causes of inequities that will be detailed in Course 2 of this specialization.

In this module, we will spend time learning about how marginalized communities came together to take care of themselves and their demonstration of resilience in the face of inequity. This not only occurred in the US but around the world with many groups.