| Dr.
Nevarez reported that the passage of the initiative
would dramatically reduce the ability of health
agencies to efficiently target resources, evaluate
program interventions, or gather information about
health disparities and their etiology.
She also reported on the work of the coalition
aligned against the Initiative. Current polls indicate
the Initiative is passing in white and Latino communities,
is even among African Americans and is running behind
in Asian communities. Focus groups have shown that
white voters tend to be concerned about the health
consequences of the Initiative while Latino and
African American voters are most concerned about
its implications for enforcement of civil rights
rules and equal access to education.
The coalition of health, civil rights, and education
organizations opposing the proposition are currently
developing strategies and messages for a public
campaign.
| Summit
Participants Express Opposition to RPI |
| After a vigorous
discussion, the participants of the second Ethnic
Physician's Organization voiced their opposition
to Ward Connerly's Racial Privacy Initiative.
Their decision followed a similar decision of
the California Medical Association to oppose
the Initiative, a decision spurred by the advocacy
of its Ethnic Medical Organization Section.
While the vote expressed only the "sense
of the Summit" and did not represent the
formal positions of the organizations represented
at the meeting, it did send a very clear message
from California's ethnic physician leaders that
the passage of the RPI would have serious consequences
for the health of all Californians.
Analysis of the measure showed that its passage
would ban the use of race and ethnicity data
by critical health research and data efforts
including the California Health Interview
Survey, Behavioral Health Interview Survey,
and a wide variety of vital statistics and
health care data bases. If passed, the RPI
would prevent state and local governments
from collecting and using data necessary to:
- Track health disparities among racial
/ ethnic populations.
- Develop and evaluate the effectiveness
of programs to address those disparities.
- Effectively control communicable and other
diseases.
Summit participants will share the information
they gained on the RPI with their organizations. |
| Service
Award to David Hayes-Bautista |
|
David Hayes-Bautista, Ph.D. was presented with
a Service Award from the Ethnic Physician Organization
Network for his contributions to the development
of the California Latino Medical Association
(CALMA). Dr. Hayes-Bautista ground breaking
analysis of the Medical Board's database of
licensed physicians identified a large proportion
of the Latino physicians in California. With
this information, CALMA organizers were able
to effectively reach out to their colleagues
and rapidly build a significant membership.
This particular project follows on a lifetime
of research and education in support of the
health of Latinos in California. Dr. Hayes-Bautista
is a Professor of Medicine and the Founding
Director of the Center for the Study of Latino
Health and Culture (CESLAC). The Center houses
Dr. Hayes-Bautista's research and provides
a significant resource for training medical
students, health care providers and public
health officials to manage the care of Latino
patients effectively, efficiently and economically.
All Californians have benefited from the
innovative and farsighted research of Dr.
Hayes-Bautista.
|
|
Panel 2: Cutting
Edge Issues