PO Box 360
Trenton, NJ 08625-0360

For Release:
April 3, 2018

Shereef Elnahal
Commissioner

For Further Information Contact:
Office of Communications
(609) 984-7160

DOH Kicks off Minority Health Month with New Funding to Decrease Disparities

To kick off a series of events and initiatives for National Minority Health Month, the New Jersey Department of Health Commissioner Dr. Shereef Elnahal today announced that the Department will issue $2.5 million in grants to fund development of intervention programs to reduce health disparities in minority communities in New Jersey.

 

This summer the Department will be awarding 17 grants to develop community interventions to prevent disparities. The grants each have a three-year term with grantees receiving $50,000 each year. Each grantee will be charged to develop best practices as a roadmap to provide quality, effective and equitable services that are responsive to diverse cultural health beliefs, practices and languages.

 

“Decreasing disparities and improving health outcomes are top priorities for Governor Murphy, myself, and the Department,” Commissioner Elnahal said. “All health care providers and agencies, community and faith-based organizations should consider culture, language, race and ethnicity as we develop new and more culturally appropriate ways to achieve health equity for our residents.”

 

Commissioner Elnahal will address the importance of reducing disparities during two upcoming forums with partners, providers, and stakeholders. The DOH is partnering with two colleges within the state to host the forums. The Department’s Office of Minority and Multicultural Health is sponsoring the Health Equity Forum at William Paterson University on April 6, and at Camden County College in Blackwood on April 27. 

 

Communities of color are disproportionately affected by chronic diseases and exposed to many public health challenges such as lead exposure, black infant mortality, and maternal mortality.

For example, for 25 years there has been a persistent disparity in the black infant mortality rate, which is three times the rate of white infants. Black maternal mortality is four times that of white mothers.

 

The Community Health Disparity Prevention Program grants announced today will fund development of programs to fill gaps that prevent people from getting the medical and behavioral healthcare treatment they need.   Applications, which are due by 3:00 p.m. Friday, May 11, 2018,  must include a community needs assessment supported by data, an estimate of the number of people to be reached, an explanation of the best practices that will be used in the programs, and a system to monitor and measure program outcomes.

 

The program supports DOH’s initiatives involving Healthy New Jersey 2020, the state’s 10-year public health agenda aimed at outlining objectives and measurable outcomes for the total population, including racial/ethnic, age, and gender subgroups.

 

The DOH and its Office of Multicultural and Minority Health (OMMH) continue to work on a variety of initiatives to create health equity, including redesigning programs and realigning investment of public dollars to increase access to treatment and better care for vulnerable populations. The Department is also working on a public awareness campaign to provide information to the public on the Affordable Care Act Marketplace and ways to enroll.

 

The theme of National Minority Health Month is “Partnering for Health Equity.”

 

Other activities to commemorate National Minority Health Month that our partners are sponsoring can be found at: http://web.doh.state.nj.us/apps2/omh/calendar.aspx

 

For more information on the Community Health Disparity Program grants visit http://www.nj.gov/health/ommh/documents/chdpp_rfa%204.pdf.

 

 

Follow the New Jersey Department of Health on Twitter @njdeptofhealth, Facebook /njdeptofhealth, Instagram @njdeptofhealth and Snapchat @njdoh.

Last Reviewed: 4/3/2018