Demographics |
Asian Americans are people having origins in any of
the original peoples of the Far East, Southeast Asia, or the Indian
subcontinent.1 |
According to the 2000 U.S. Census,
those who identify only as Asian-American comprise 3.6 percent
of the American population, approximately 10 million individuals. |
The Census Bureau projects that the Asian-American population will grow to 37.6
million individuals by the year 2050, comprising 9.3 percent of the population. |
Asian-American populations
are generally concentrated in the western states, the Northeast, and parts
of the South. The states with the greatest concentration of Asian
Americans are
Hawaii, California, Washington, New Jersey, and New York.2 |
Statistics |
The Asian Population,
2000 (pdf) US Census Bureau Brief |
Asian
& Pacific Islander Populations, US Census
Bureau |
Top
of Page |
10 Leading Causes of Death
Asian American &
Pacific Islander Population, U.S., 2005 |
|
Statistics |
Leading Causes of Death by Race/Ethnicity (pdf)
Health,
U.S., 2008, Table 30 |
Top
of Page |
Other
High Prevalence Health Issues |
In addition, Asian Americans
have disproportionately high prevalence of the following conditions and
risk factors: |
|
Top
of Page |
Health
Disparities |
Asian Americans represent a wide variety
of languages, dialects, and cultures as different from one another as from
non-Asian groups. Asian Americans have
historically been
overlooked due to the “myth of the model
minority”: the erroneous notion that Asian Americans are passive, compliant,
and without problems or needs. The effects of this
myth have been the failure to take seriously the very real concerns of
this population. |
Asian Americans represent both extremes of
socioeconomic and health indices: while more than a million Asian
Americans live at or below the federal poverty level, Asian-American women
have the highest life expectancy of any other group.
Asian Americans
suffer disproportionately from certain types of cancer, tuberculosis, and
Hepatitis B. Factors contributing to poor health outcomes for Asian
Americans include language and cultural barriers, stigma associated with
certain conditions, and lack of health insurance.3 |
For more information on
some of the health disparities faced by the Asian American
community, see
Highlight on Asian American & Pacific Islanders and click below for brochures,
slides and statistics on that topic. |
Statistics |
Mortality Rates by Race/Ethnicity (pdf) Health,
U.S., 2006, Table 29 |
Mid Course Review, Healthy People 2010 |
Data 2010, Healthy People 2010 |
Top
of Page |
Brochures & Handouts |
Main Menu |
|
Asian American Brochure
(pdf) |
|
Asian American Handout
(pdf) |
|
Slides |
|
Slides showing Disparity (ppt)
PowerPoint Presentation on the Office of Minority Health and Health Disparities
(OMHD) containing data slides (beginning with slide 21) comparing U.S. incidence
or mortality rates by race/ethnicity.
To view these slides in PDF format, see Slides
(PDF) |
Top
of Page |
Health Statistics |
CDC's National Center
for Health Statistics (NCHS) |
|
Health of
Asian or Pacific Islander Population, Fast Stats |
|
Health Data for All Ages |
|
Health, United States, 2006 |
|
Asian or Pacific Islander Population |
|
Mortality Rates by Race/Ethnicity (pdf) Table 29 |
|
Leading
Causes of Death by Race/Ethnicity (pdf) Table 31 |
|
Healthy People 2010 |
|
Data 2010 |
|
Mid Course Review |
HHS Office of Minority
Health Resource Center |
|
Asian American
/ Pacific Islander Profile |
U.S. Census Bureau |
|
The
Asian Population,
Brief, 2000 (pdf) |
|
Asian
and Pacific Islander Populations |
|
Asian
Pacific American Heritage Month May 2008 |
Top
of Page |
Government Resources |
|
CDC |
|
Asian American News Page
MMWR and other articles related to the topics of Asian Americans and
Health Disparities. |
|
National Center for HIV, STD, and TB Prevention
(NCHSTP) |
|
|
Division of HIV/AIDS
Prevention |
|
|
|
HIV/AIDS Among Asians and Pacific Islanders Fact Sheet |
|
|
Office of Health Disparities, NCHSTP |
|
National Center for
Chronic Disease Prevention and
Health Promotion (NCCDPHP) |
|
National Center for Injury Prevention and Control
(NCIPC) |
|
National Immunization
Program (NIP) |
|
National Prevention Information Network (NPIN) |
|
|
Asian Language
HIV/AIDS, & STD Information |
|
National Institutes of Health (NIH) |
|
Asian-American Health
Medline Plus |
|
Asian American Health National Library of Medicine (NLM) |
|
Asian American
Health
Healthfinder |
|
Cancer Health Disparities National Cancer
Institute (NCI) |
|
National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and
Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) |
|
National Institute of Mental Health
(NIMH) |
|
National Institute of Neurological Disorders and
Stroke (NINDS) |
|
Osteoporosis and Related Bone Diseases
National Resource Center |
|
SAMHSA (Mental Health) |
|
Asian Americans/Pacific
Islanders Mental Health Fact Sheet
SAMHSA Surgeon General's Report |
|
Asian Americans/Pacific
Islanders Culturally Specific Mental Health Resources |
|
Other |
|
Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders
White House Initiative |
|
Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders Addressing Health Disparities:
Opportunities for Building a Healthier America
President's Advisory Commission Report, 2007 |
|
Asian
Americans and Pacific Islanders Social Security Online |
|
New Guidelines on Language Service for People with Limited English
Proficiency (LEP)
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) |
Top
of Page |
Non-Government Resources |
|
American Cancer Society (ACS) |
|
American Heart Association
(AHA) |
|
American Lung Association (ALA) |
|
Asian Americans, Pacific Islanders, & Diabetes
American Diabetes Association (ADA) |
|
Asian and Pacific Islander American Health Forum (APIAHF) |
|
Association of Asian Pacific Community Health Organizations (AAPCHO) |
|
National SIDS Resource Center
(NSRC) |
|
NAWHO Health Equity for Asian Americans |
|
South Asian Public Health Forum (SAPHF) |
Top
of Page |
Funding |
|
CDC Funding Opportunities |
Top
of Page |
Sources |
|
1
Census
Bureau, Census 2000 Brief: Overview of Race and Hispanic Origin,
2000. |
|
2
The Asian Population,
2000 (pdf) US Census Bureau Brief |
|
3 National Center for Health
Statistics (NCHS), Health U.S., 2006,
Table 27. |
|
4 The Health Care Challenge:
Acknowledging Disparity, Confronting Discrimination, and Ensuring
Equality. United States
Commission on Civil Rights, Sept. 1999. |
Top
of Page |
Notes |
|
Census 2000 adheres to the federal standards for
collecting and presenting data on race and Hispanic origin as established
by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) in October 1997
and subsequent guidelines. One of the
most important changes for Census 2000 was the revision of the questions
on race and Hispanic origin to better reflect the country’s growing
diversity. The federal government considers race and Hispanic origin to be
two separate and distinct concepts. In addition, Asian
Americans and Native Hawaiians and Other Pacific Islanders are
counted as two separate and distinct racial groups. Because of these changes, the Census
2000 data on race are not directly comparable with data from the 1990
census or earlier censuses. Caution must be used when interpreting changes
in the racial composition of the U.S. population over time. |
|
Census Bureau Glossary of Terms: Race, 2000. |
|
Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Provisional Guidance on the
Implementation of the 1997 Standards for Federal Data on Race and
Ethnicity, 2000. |
|
OMB Recommendations form the Interagency Committee for the Review of the
Racial and Ethnic Standards to the OMB Concerning Changes to the Stnadards
for the Classification of Federal Data on Race and Ethnicity, 1997.
|
Top
of Page |