AHA launches national program dedicated to closing gaps in health equity

The AHA and its Institute for Diversity and Health Equity with support from the Aetna Foundation today announced the launch of a national program dedicated to closing gaps in health equity. The Hospital Community Cooperative (HCC) program challenges 10 AHA member hospitals located in diverse communities across the country to address one or more goals of the AHA’s #123forEquity pledge and one or more of the five domains comprising the Aetna Foundation’s Cultivating Healthy Communities program to tackle public health issues. “HCC aims to help shape the narrative around diversity and health equity by generating a new class of AHA Equity of Care champions, providing models of success for other hospitals and health systems and opening the door for bolder approaches that move resources, policies and practices upstream,” said Jay Bhatt, D.O., AHA senior vice president and chief medical officer. The yearlong pilot program kicks off today in Chicago with a three-day learning session.