health disparities

April 15, 2026 | 8:41 AM

Inside the Shapiro administration’s ‘absolutely ambitious’ plan to prevent maternal deaths

The group charged with implementation has awarded nearly $600,000 to fund initiatives targeted at year-one goals like supporting moms with substance use disorder.

By Jaxon White of Spotlight PA

August 16, 2021 | 10:53 AM

VA patients of color less likely to be prescribed blood thinners for a common cardiac issue, study shows

Researchers found that Black, Hispanic, and American Indian/Alaska Native patients were less likely to receive newer and more effective — and now standard-of-care — blood thinners.

By Sojourner Ahebee/WHYY

June 21, 2021 | 8:41 AM

Study names Temple University Hospital the most racially inclusive in Pa.; many urban hospital markets lag behind

The 700-bed hospital in the heart of North Philadelphia is the major education and teaching center for the Lewis Katz School of Medicine at Temple University, and the hospital has a large research mission as part of its education efforts.

By Sojourner Ahebee/WHYY

June 8, 2021 | 8:13 AM

Anti-vaccine film targeted to Black Americans spreads false information

The film draws a line from the very real and disturbing history of racism and atrocities in the medical field — like the Tuskegee syphilis study — to interviews with anti-vaccine activists who warn communities of color to be suspicious of modern day vaccines.

By NPR

April 23, 2021 | 7:35 AM

COVID vaccine inequity between Black and white Allegheny County residents increases

Analysis by the Pittsburgh-based Black Equity Coalition found that in mid-March Black residents made up of 6.8% of the county’s fully vaccinated population. Updated data from April 9 shows that has fallen to 5.8%.

By Sarah Boden/WESA

March 22, 2021 | 7:45 AM

Who’s getting the COVID-19 vaccine, who isn’t, and why?

National polling shows that vaccine hesitancy across communities has dropped dramatically over the past three months.

By Hannah Chinn/WHYY and WHYY Staff

March 17, 2021 | 4:46 PM

New Pa. initiative seeks to identify and reduce causes of health disparities

In Luzerne County, life expectancy is 73, but just minutes away, life expectancy is 85. While in Erie, life expectancy is 60, when just minutes away life expectancy is 80.

By Zoë Read/WHYY

February 25, 2021 | 7:26 AM

Different viruses, same results: Why Black Americans are more likely to die from both HIV & COVID-19

A year into the coronavirus pandemic, this virus has proven nearly twice as deadly for Black Americans than for white.

By Sarah Boden/WESA

February 23, 2021 | 7:57 AM

History repeats itself: COVID-19 vaccine inequities echo HIV crisis

Rich countries are hoarding vaccines, poor countries are paying higher pricesfor them and the central lesson of the HIV epidemic - that if one person is vulnerable, everyone is vulnerable - seems lost.

By NPR

February 5, 2021 | 7:44 AM

Black babies are twice as likely to be born preterm. CHOP doctors are using COVID-19 to explore why

A preterm birth is defined as one that happens before 37 completed weeks of gestation. When someone is pregnant, the due date is at the end of 40 completed weeks of gestation. So if a baby is born more than three weeks before that due date, that baby is considered preterm.

By Sojourner Ahebee/WHYY

tag | health disparities