title: Parallel tracks: reflections on the need for collaborative health disparities research on race/ethnicity and disability.
abstract: Public policy driving health disparities research has overwhelmingly focused on racial and ethnic populations other than non-Hispanic whites; these groups have historically been and continue to be disproportionately impacted by health disparities. Only recently has public policy focused on the inclusion of people with disabilities as a distinct health disparities population. These 2 areas of research have traveled parallel paths with little recognition of the health disparities that affect people at the intersection of race, ethnicity, and disability. This commentary reflects on the history, foci, and current status of these 2 separate tracks of health disparities research. We conclude the commentary with suggestions for merging the 2 tracks to develop research that addresses both disability as well as race and ethnicity.
authors.affiliation: *National Center for Cultural Competence, Center for Child and Human Development, Georgetown University Medical Center, Washington, DC †Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of Maryland College Park, School of Public Health, MD ‡Institute on Development & Disability, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR §Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund, Berkeley, CA.
authors.forename: Tawara D
authors.initials: TD
authors.lastname: Goode
authors.forename: Olivia D
authors.initials: OD
authors.lastname: Carter-Pokras
authors.forename: Willi
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Horner-Johnson
authors.forename: Silvia
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Yee
mesh_terms: D003299:Cooperative Behavior; D006233:Persons with Disabilities; D005006:Ethnicity; D006302:Health Services Research; D054625:Healthcare Disparities; D006801:Humans; D011640:Public Policy; D044469:Racial Groups; D012107:Research Design; D014481:United States