Congressman Steven Horsford and House Ways and Means Committee Release a Report Analyzing Racial and Economic Disparities in the American Health System

North Las Vegas, Nev. -- Today, Congressman Steven Horsford (NV-04) and the House Ways and Means Committee Democrats released a report, titled "Left Out: Barriers to Health Equity for Rural and Underserved Communities." The report examines several systemic barriers to quality healthcare in the American health system ranging from population health and coverage barriers, to massive health system deficiencies, to structural environmental factors and highlights these barriers as a result of racism and economic inequality.

"This report on health disparities in rural and underserved communities is a reminder that even without the COVID-19 pandemic, our healthcare system is in serious trouble," said Congressman Steven Horsford. "These communities have been fighting the battle for access to quality, affordable healthcare for decades. As lawmakers, we owe it to the millions of vulnerable Americans to recognize racial and economic inequalities as drivers of healthcare inequities and use this report to guide us in creating multi-level, sustainable policy solutions that address these challenges."

The report includes nearly 200 responses received from a Request for Information (RFI) that was released by the Ways and Means Committee's Rural and Underserved Communities Health Task Force in November of 2019.

The full report can be found here.

A summary of the report can be found here.

The Nevada health equity map can be found here.