By Krishna Ramanujan

Across the board, the number of Americans who develop Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias increases with age.  But for African Americans, the risk is much greater – twice as high when compared to whites, according to a special report on race, ethnicity and Alzheimer’s Disease published this year by the Alzheimer’s Association.

The report, which is part of the association’s 2010 Alzheimer’s Disease Facts and Figures, cites greater exposure to risk factors ­­– such as high blood pressure, diabetes, low socioeconomic status, and lower education levels –­ as the main cause of the discrepancies.

“Cognitive impairment...Read More >>

By Michael Eisenstein

After a seemingly endless media spectacle of charged political debate and heated invective, President Obama’s campaign goal of healthcare reform is now a reality. As the dust settles, however, many are still in the dark about what the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) will actually change—particularly with regard to its stated objective of improving medical care for the nation’s most vulnerable.

It is well established that racial and ethnic minorities are disproportionately represented among America’s poor. Thus, they are especially prone to disparities in medical access that arise from falling into the gap between Medicaid eligibility...Read More >>

By Chapal Mehra

Microfinance is arguably one of the most powerful tools of poverty reduction in the world today. It helps the poor by providing them essential financial services that they otherwise cannot access.

However, many contend that the role of microfinance institutions (MFIs) should not be to offer financial services alone. Grameen Bank in Bangladesh, which is credited with the world’s microfinance revolution, was amongst the earliest MFI’s to provide its clients health services along with micro loans. The rationale for this was a simple—the poor would remain poor unless they have good health. The organization created...Read More >>

By Michael Eisenstein

It is the cradle of humanity, and evidence suggests that the world’s ethnic diversity originated from a single exodus of a few thousand individuals from Africa approximately 100,000 years ago. Until very recently, however, Africa was essentially a blank spot on geneticists’ maps.

University of Pennsylvania researcher Sarah Tishkoff recalls being surprised as a graduate student by the dearth of genomic data. “Pretty much the only African populations being studied by our group… were Pygmies,” she says. “Samples just didn’t exist.” This limitation was due in part to problems of access, but there was also a strong funding...Read More >>

By Lindsay Goldwert

One in six Latina adolescents in the U.S. contemplates and in many instances, attempts suicide.  This rate puts young Latinas at a significantly higher suicide risk than their white, Asian, and African-American peers, according to the National Alliance on Mental Health.

Doctors and researchers have been grappling with this troubling statistic since 1998, when the Centers for Disease Control started reporting on the mental health crisis in the Latino community.

In 2006, Dr. Rosa Gil, a former Health Policy Advisor to the Mayor and Health Administrator of New York City, first began...Read More >>

By Jessica M. Scully

With the passage of the stimulus act, 2009 was a particularly good year for research funding. While President Obama has proposed a second stimulus package, for now it appears federal funding for 2010 will increase just slightly over 2009 budgets, excluding stimulus funds. Private funding sources took a hit in 2009, which is expected to continue in 2010.

The tight funding climate means researchers will have to study different sources of funding, broaden their search for funds, and make sure their proposals are as competitive as possible, according to several experts.

For the National Institutes of Health,...Read More >>

By Paula Hartman Cohen

Today’s tight economy has eliminated jobs in all sectors, including public and private research. No one is immune to joblessness, even those with advanced degrees and experience. As universities and research centers cut back on staff, this may be a good time to leverage professional training into a field that promises employment opportunities. Right now, that field is health care.

The federal government is making it easier for individuals to be part of a resource pool to care for millions of people newly insured through health care reform.

According to Howard Koh, who serves as the assistant...Read More >>

By Krishna Ramanujan

Will Allen is one of the only African-American farmers in all of Wisconsin. At 6-foot-7, the son of a sharecropper, Allen enjoyed a stint playing professional basketball in Belgium, before he bought the last zoned agricultural land within Milwaukee city limits in 1993.

Soon after, Allen hired local youth and taught them to grow vegetables. He realized that growing fresh food in northwest Milwaukee served a vital need: The low-income residents of his community had no access to healthy foods. The streets were lined with McDonald’s, fried fish restaurants, and liquor and convenience stores, but no full-service groceries—a...Read More >>

By Jessica M. Scully

In the months since the federal stimulus act was passed, released funds have supported renewable energy research and highway projects, as well as helped extend unemployment benefits.  Along with these more publicized aspects of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, stimulus funds are also supporting biomedical research on health issues disproportionately affecting minorities, and programs assisting minority students interested in biomedical careers.

The National Institutes of Health received $10 billion under the act. As of early October, over $5 billion had been awarded from these funds, with information about grants made available on a...Read More >>

By Paula Hartman Cohen

In the U.S., more than 35 million people identify themselves as Hispanic or Latino, according to the 2000 Census.  To celebrate the important cultural, educational, and scientific contributions made by Hispanics, in 1988 President Gerald Ford declared the month beginning September 15 as Hispanic Heritage Month.  The date was chosen to coincide with Independence Day celebrations in Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua.

A number of notable Hispanic scientists work in the U.S. today.  They include Nobel physicist Luis Walter Alvarez, chemist Mario Molina, biochemist Severo Ochoa,...Read More >>

By Michael Eisenstein

When President Barack Obama was voted into office, many observers saw it as a public mandate for far-reaching reform—and tackling the United States healthcare system was near the top of the list. Addressing Congress this past February, Obama stated the point plainly: “We must have quality, affordable healthcare for every American.”

Six months later, H.R. 3200—the America’s Affordable Health Choices Act (AHCA)—is currently making its way through the House. Among other provisions, the bill would create a ‘health insurance exchange’ where private providers would compete with a government-managed ‘public plan’ to provide coverage;...Read More >>

By Paula Hartman Cohen