Resources on Implementing Health Reform in the States

• The Alliance for Health Reform briefing [6] on Implementing Health Reform in the States is archived and available for viewing. The briefing covers implementation of the Medicaid expansion and what happens if the Supreme Court rules that the expansion is unconstitutional; and an update on steps that various states are taking towards implementation of the health insurance exchanges and other provisions.

• The National Conference of State Legislatures keeps a database [11] of state bills responding to the Affordable Care Act. The database is searchable by state and topic area, and the topics are defined and explained here [12]. This resource is useful for organizations that may not be actively involved in state activities or who want to compare activities in their state to other states.

• The New England Journal of Medicine [7] provides an overview and timeline of what to expect for the rest of the year as implementation continues forward, and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation released this State Milestones for ACA Implementation [8] brief identifying critical milestones for states to achieve by the end of 2012. The document is organized under the major areas of Health Insurance Exchange, Private Insurance Market Reforms, and Medicaid Expansion.

New Resources on Minority Health and Health Disparities

• The 2011 National Healthcare Disparities Report released in April 2012, summarizes health care quality and access among various racial, ethnic, and income groups and other priority populations, such as residents of rural areas and people with disabilities. Since 2003, the federal Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) has reported on the progress and opportunities for improving health care quality and reducing health care disparities. It seeks to answer critical questions about the status of health care quality and disparities in the United States, how health care quality and disparities have changed over time, and to identify the areas of greatest need to improve health care quality and reduce disparities. The report found that Asians Americans received worse care than Whites for about 30% of quality measures, and worse access to care than Whites for 17% of access measures. The report is available in electronic (PDF) format here [9], and print copies can be obtained by contacting AHRQ here [13].

• The Office of Minority Health Resource Center recently created this [14] helpful website detailing opportunities for federal grant funding and other health equity resources. Information about activities celebrating April as Minority Health Month can be found here [10].

• In celebration of National Minority Health Month, the Health Equity and Accountability Act (HEAA) Community Working Group is hosting a three day blog carnival [15] aimed at lifting the voices for action to reduce racial and ethnic health disparities. Under the banner of, Health Equity Can’t Wait, contributors are sharing how organizations and communities are taking action to promote health equity and reduce health disparities while exploring key questions and issues that guide our work.

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