Health and Illness Among African-Americans Essay

Introduction

In Miami, people have different perceptions of health and illness. Latinos, African-Americans, and Asian-Americans constitute some of the ethnic minorities who are highly vulnerable to inequalities when it comes to healthcare accessibility. This paper focuses on the perception of health and illness among African-Americans in Miami.

Statistics on Healthcare Disparities among African-Americans in Miami

The capacity to access quality health care depends on a region’s economic status. Among the ethnic minorities in Miami, these factors influence equality in healthcare accessibility in two ways. Firstly, low-income earners can sparingly afford health care insurance. Secondly, they live under conditions that are likely to expose them to more health risks. Such conditions include homelessness or drug and substance abuse (Hafetz, 2009).

Statistical findings indicate that African-Americans constitute ethnic minority groups that are most likely to have low accessibility to health care because of their low-income status. For example, in 2013, the US Census Bureau reported that 27% of African-Americans live in poverty compared to 11% Asian Americans and 12% Caucasians (DeNavas-Walt & Bernadette, 2014).Health and Illness Among African-Americans Essay

The United States Department of Health and Human Services Agency for Health Care Research and Quality (2013) reported that by 2012, 24% of the low-income population and 23% of the poor population did not have any health insurance. In total, 18% of African-Americans and 16% of Asian-Americans lacked healthcare insurance by 2012. This finding indicates the correlation between ethnic disparities in healthcare accessibility based on income or poverty status.

Specific Experiential Experience of Stereotyping: How it has Influenced Health Care

African-Americans have traditionally faced racial exclusion in the care system. African-Americans are highly vulnerable to homelessness due to their low-social economic status. A common stereotype is that homelessness is a characteristic of all African-Americans in Miami and that they are racially inferior (Hafetz, 2009). This perception hinders them from seeking quality health care since they consider it a reserve of the culturally advanced people.Health and Illness Among African-Americans Essay