Better Data Collection Needed to Address Disparities in Health Care

August 31, 2009 -- A new report from the Institute of Medicine recommends that U.S. health care providers collect more-detailed data on patients’ race, ethnicity, and language. High-quality data are essential to helping organizations understand and remedy racial and ethnic disparities in health care. The information currently gathered is often not used to examine health care quality and is insufficient to illuminate many disparities in care, the report says.

• Report in Brief
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