Office of Minority Health

Our Mission: The Office of Minority Health is dedicated to improving the health of racial and ethnic minority populations through the development of health policies and programs that will help eliminate health disparities. Our History.

Our Strategic Priorities

• Support the development and implementation of the provisions of the Affordable Care Act that address disparities and equity
  
  By improving access to quality health care for all Americans, the Affordable Care Act helps to reduce health disparities, bring down health care costs, promote prevention and wellness, and give individuals and families more control over their own care.
  
  The Health Care Law and You
  The Affordable Care Act and Minority Populations
  From Coverage to Care
  Improving Data Collection Standards


• Lead the implementation of the HHS Action Plan to Reduce Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities
  
  The HHS Action Plan to Reduce Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities outlines goals and actions HHS will take to reduce health disparities among racial and ethnic minorities. The Office of Minority Health is leading the charge to put the HHS Disparities Action Plan into practice.


• Coordinate the National Partnership for Action to End Health Disparities and the National Stakeholder Strategy for Achieving Health Equity
  
  National Partnership for Action to End Health Disparities
  NPA reaches out to the grassroots level to mobilize a nationwide, comprehensive, community-driven and sustained approach to combating health disparities.
  
  National Stakeholder Strategy for Achieving Health Equity
  The strategy provides a common set of goals and objectives for public and private sector partnerships to help racial and ethnic minorities - and other underserved groups - reach their full health potential.

Disparities Reduction and Health Equity

Racial and ethnic minorities continue to lag behind other populations in many health outcomes. They are less likely to get the preventive care they need to stay healthy, more likely to suffer from serious illnesses, such as diabetes or heart disease, and when they do get sick, are less likely to have access to quality health care.

Health disparities among racial and ethnic minorities are often linked to social, economic or environmental disadvantages, such as lack of access to good jobs, unsafe neighborhoods and lack of affordable transportation options. These conditions are known as the social determinants of health.

The Office of Minority Health's programs, policies and practices address such factors, with the goal of affording everyone an opportunity to live a long, healthy and productive life, and to improve the overall quality of life for the nation as a whole.

Organizational Structure

The Office of Minority Health is led by the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Minority Health.

• The Division of Information and Education manages minority health information, education and awareness activities and campaigns, coordinates media and press relations, and oversees the OMH Resource Center.

• The Division of Policy and Data develops and coordinates strategic plans and special initiatives, coordinates and conducts studies and evaluations, and plans and coordinates statistical and data analyses and efforts to improve data availability and quality.

• The Division of Program Operations manages demonstration grant programs and cooperative agreements, monitors the performance of recipients and coordinates with other HHS and federal organizations who are contributing partners to the demonstration grants and cooperative agreements.