National Academies report recommends federal actions to advance health equity

The president should create a permanent federal body responsible for advancing racial, ethnic and tribal equity across the federal government, according to recommendations released July 27 by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. Among other actions, the report calls for Congress to create a scorecard to assess how all proposed federal legislation might impact health equity and for federal agencies to conduct an equity audit of their current policies.

“Addressing the nation’s racial and ethnic health disparities is an imperative for the medical community, and a crucial goal the National Academy of Medicine has worked toward for years,” said Victor Dzau, president of the National Academy of Medicine. “This report’s recommendations are a path forward for improving equity in the federal policies, systems, and structures that shape our health and well-being.”