By Yasmine Winkler, Chief Marketing, Product and Innovation Officer, UnitedHealthcare
Winkler
UNITEDHEALTH GROUP IS a diversified health and well-being company with the mission of helping people live healthier lives. We recognize that the United States demographic make-up is ever-changing and becoming more diverse, with multicultural populations becoming the predominant driver of population growth.
In the United States, health disparities are well-documented in minority populations, including African Americans, Native Americans, Asian Americans and Latinos. When compared to whites, these minority groups have higher incidence of chronic diseases, higher mortality, and poorer health outcomes. Among the disease-specific examples of racial and ethnic disparities in the United States is the cancer incidence rate among African Americans, which is 10 percent higher than among whites. Adult African Americans and Latinos have approximately twice the risk as whites of developing diabetes. Minorities also have higher rates of cardiovascular disease, HIV/AIDS, and infant mortality than whites.
UnitedHealth Group has established programs and products and services to meet the needs of diverse populations and fight health disparities. Services are available that include bilingual, in-culture materials and websites with information on everything from prevalent health conditions and lifestyle information to enrollment tools and physician search assistance. We also offer programs targeted at ethnic groups such as PlanBien, a health benefits program designed for Spanish-speaking Hispanics and their families; Asian Initiatives, supported by culturally and linguistically appropriate services; and Generations of Wellness, which provides culturally specific health information through educational campaigns to help African Americans.
These initiatives provide culturally and linguistically appropriate health educational materials and health care; focus prevention, health education, and treatment efforts for specific demographic groups on health conditions prevalent in such groups; help improve health plans across diverse populations; and ensure equity in access and quality of care.
Based on the tremendous growth trajectories of minorities in the United States, UnitedHealth Group will continue to innovate culturally relevant products and services for all Americans.
