Governmental use of racial equity tools

Asian, Black, Indigenous, and Latino Americans die earlier, have higher infant mortality rates, and suffer more chronic conditions and disabilities than most white Americans. These health inequities are due in part to systemic racism and the social determinants of health (SDOH). Racial equity tools enable decisionmakers to identify how policies and programs can disproportionately harm racial and ethnic minority groups. Our study, funded by the Robert Wood Johnson’s Policies for Action program, focused on whether and how local jurisdictions nationwide used racial equity tools to address systemic racism and the SDOH. (author introduction)