Health Equity Reports by State and Territory
This page showcases a variety of selected state-produced health equity reports. These reports will give you examples of state public health departments’ approaches by highlighting data, identifying progress, and providing tools and resources to put the focus on health equity and health disparities.
Alabama
Alabama Health Disparities Status Report 2010 (PDF)
This report focuses on health disparities in Alabama with tobacco and nutrition/physical activity, as well as six common chronic health conditions, such as diabetes, cancer, cardiovascular disease, infant mortality, HIV/AIDS, and mental illness.
Source: Alabama Department of Public Health, Office of Minority Health
Hawaii
Foundations for Healthy Generations (PDF)
Hawaii's strategic plan for FY 2011-2014 includes health equity as one of its five foundational principles. Its goal is to “eliminate disparities and improve the health of all groups throughout Hawaii.” The health equity objectives are: Improve access, affordability, and quality of care; Increase culturally and community-oriented interventions; Collaborate on longitudinal, unified, and interactive data systems to document health status and risk factors; Reduce stigma associated with health conditions.
Source: Hawaii Department of Health
Maryland
Maryland Plan to Eliminate Minority Health Disparities: Plan of Action 2010-2014 (PDF)
This report is a second edition of the original Maryland Plan to Eliminate Health Disparities Report. This one looks at the work and progress made since the last report that was published in 2006, provides up-to-date information on disparities in Maryland, updates the implementation plan, and provides an action plan to help Maryland eliminate health disparities among minorities.
Source: Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene
Minnesota
Advancing Health Equity in Minnesota (PDF)
This legislative report used an extensive community-based process leading to recommendations for advancing health equity in Minnesota, including: create a Minnesota Center for Health Equity; adopt a “health in all policies” approach; examine policies across state agencies for structural inequities, such as structural racism; improve statewide data related to health equity; develop stronger partnerships with communities; diversify the workforce; redesign grant-making processes to support emerging organizations; and engage stakeholders in decision-making processes.
Source: Minnesota Department of Health
North Carolina
Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities in North Carolina (PDF)
The report is a useful tool that shows leading health indicators for broad racial and ethnic population groups for North Carolina, supporting data for those health indicators, and a letter grade that ranks the health status of those groups. This report ranks the health of the different minority groups against the health of the white population in North Carolina to highlight the disparities.
Source: North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services
Vermont
The Health Disparities of Vermonters (PDF)
This report presents information, maps, data and trends that highlight health disparities and social determinants of health as they exist in Vermont, as well as recommended actions that can be taken to reduce these disparities.
Source: Vermont Department of Health
Virginia
Virginia Health Equity Report 2012 (PDF)
This report includes two new resources to aid in educating the public and influencing decision-making and policy: the Health Disparity Cost Analysis, which demonstrates the economic burden of health inequities, and the Health Opportunity Index (HOI). The HOI geographically displays the distribution of key social determinants of health and their association with life expectancy, low birth weight, and HIV/AIDS in Virginia.
Source: Virginia Department of Health