At the end of 2013, about 25 percent of Arkansans did not have health insurance - that's more than half a million adults under the age of 65. For many of them, health insurance has been too costly to obtain. Some 572,000 Arkansans are eligible for coverage in 2014, and an estimated $478 million in federal subsidies will be available for consumers in Arkansas who purchase health insurance.
There are several reasons for racial and socioeconomic health disparities, such as poor quality of care, lack of transportation, poverty, low educational attainment and low health literacy. These factors contribute to predominantly rural, low-income Arkansans not having access to quality health care.
To learn more, read the Bridge Spring 2014 magazine (PDF)
About the Arkansas Minority Health Commission
The Arkansas Minority Health Commission (AMHC) was established in 1991 to assure that all Arkansans have equal access to quality health care, regardless of race or ethnicity and to eliminate racial and ethnic health disparities in Arkansas. The Commission supports its mission through: 1) studying diseases prevalent in racial and ethnic minority populations and issues related to minority health care access and service delivery; 2) identifying any gaps in the state's health care delivery system that particularly affect minorities; and 3) recommending policy changes to relevant agencies and the Arkansas legislature to improve health and healthcare delivery and access for racial and ethnic minorities.
Know Your Glucose Numbers
Diabetes can lead to a wide range of other serious health complications, such as heart disease, stroke, high blood pressure, blindness, kidney disease, dental disease, nervous system disease, complications of pregnancy and more.
The Arkansas Minority Health Commission reminds you
to visit your healthcare professional for an accurate reading of your
glucose numbers and Take Control of Your Health!