Impact of past racist policies are seen today in health inequity

Health inequity is real, and it can be seen in statistics that show there are more than 74,000 excess deaths among Black people compared with white people each year in the 30 largest American cities. This includes the home of the AMA’s headquarters, Chicago, where racial inequities in mortality rates result in an average of 3,804 excess deaths among Black people a year compared to white people, according to a study published in JAMA Network Open. Examining the city’s statistics even further finds that a 14-year life-expectancy gap exists between affluent and historically under-resourced communities only a short distance apart. (author introduction)