Quality of care and health disparities: The evolving role of the government

Abstract

Over the past 20 yr there has been a significant evolution in the role of the Federal government in addressing the problem of health disparities in the United States. In this chapter, the nature of health disparities among minorities and underserved populations in this country, and early governmental approaches to the problem are described in brief. A historical and descriptive overview of the government's efforts, since 1985, to eliminate health disparities in the United States will be concentrated on. © 2007 Humana Press Inc.