Researchers Get $82 Million to Push for Minority Health Solutions

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A dozen new research centers will tackle Latino and minority health problems thanks to $82 million for the next five years from the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIMHD).

Latinos suffer worse rates of obesity, diabetes, and certain cancers and diseases.

Why? They face cultural and language barriers, lack of access to resources, and a drastic lack of health care coverage.

Doctor In Surgery Examining Young Girl with Latina MomWith this new round of funding, the NIMHD will create 12 “Centers of Excellence” to investigate preventable diseases like heart disease and diabetes, along with exposure to substance use disorder, violence, and trauma, which disproportionately affect minorities.

“We need strong collaborations and research based upon asking the right questions in specific areas,” said Dr. Eliseo J. Pérez-Stable, NIMHD director, in a news release. “The Centers of Excellence are poised to emphasize scientific inquiry that will promote health equity.”

The new centers are designed to “foster collaborative research in minority health and health disparities” to improve the health of minorities.

For example, Drs. Victoria Behar Mitrani and Mario R. De La Rosa will create the Center for Latino Health Research Opportunities at the University of Miami, Florida.

Drs. Mitran and De La Rosa will conduct and promote research to advance interventions tailored for Latino groups who experience the greatest health risks, such as seasonal farmworkers, sexual/gender minority individuals, and youth. The focus will be on community-based interventions that can have the greatest impact by addressing the root causes of the intertwined health conditions of substance use disorder, violence/trauma, and HIV/AIDS.

Also, Dr. Lisa Marie Cacari-Stone will set up the Transdisciplinary Research, Equity, and Engagement Center for Advancing Behavioral Health at the University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center in Albuquerque.

Her center will seek to improve conditions and outcomes related to youth suicide, alcohol and drug misuse, depression, and access to behavioral health services. among American Indian/Alaska Native and Latino populations in New Mexico.

Go here for the full list of programs funded by the NIMHD.

Learn what others are doing to help Latino health here:

By The Numbers By The Numbers

25.1

percent

of Latinos remain without health insurance coverage

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