Health and Disability

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April is minority health month, and we’ve been featuring blogs about health equity. This week the biggest story was about a new study documenting the widening life expectancy gap between the rich and the poor. But there are some other important stories as well:

While the contaminated drinking water crisis in Flint continues, the problem of lead contamination is actually widespread, causing at least some members of Congress to propose more expansive testing standards, especially in schools and daycare centers. The EPA is also working to strengthen the rules that would protect drinking water, but say that a final rule is at least a year (and a new administration) away.

And, ICYMI, a new study University of Massachusetts’ study appearing in the American Journal of Public Health shows that older African Americans are more likely to have medical debt than are older whites. The study underscores how the issues of racial, economic and health care justice are intertwined