The Health Disparities Podcast

Food as medicine and the role of Medicaid in addressing social determinants of health

Food insecurity is a systemic public health issue that needs to be addressed because reliable access to healthy food is critical to positive health outcomes.
Health care partnerships are forming to improve access to healthy foods in some states, including Massachusetts, which is at the forefront of addressing food insecurity with programs that allow Medicaid funding to be used to address social determinants of health.
“I would push back on the idea that things like food and housing are not actually medical,” says Jennifer Obadia, senior director of health care partnerships at Project Bread, a nonprofit focused on creating a sustainable, system-wide safety net in Massachusetts for anyone facing hunger. 
“Now, I understand they're not pharmaceutical,” she adds. “But we know that 80% of a person's health is determined by social and environmental factors.”
In this week’s episode, Jennifer Obadia speaks with Movement Is Life’s Sonia Cervantes about food insecurity, Project Bread’s mission, lessons learned over the years and shares a call to action for listeners.
Project Bread's FoodSource Hotline (1-800-645-8333) is the food assistance line for all of Massachusetts, whether you need help paying for food and don't know where to start or you're simply curious about ways to boost your food budget or save on groceries.
 
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Saying the Quiet Part Out Loud: Dr. Kimberly Allen on Judgment, Dialogue, and Racial Healing

Conversation is an important part of bringing an end to racism so that everyone thrives in our society. It’s something that the leaders of 904Ward care deeply about. 
The 904Ward organization evolved the Jacksonville 904 dialing area code into a nonprofit whose mission is to create racial healing and equity through deep conversations and learning, trusting relationships, and collective action. 
Dr. Kimberly Allen served as the inaugural CEO of 904WARD from 2020 to 2025. 
“I think we all make judgments all the time because that's just the nature of our brains and how it works, but what I would encourage us to do is to call those judgments out and, I say, ‘Say the quiet part out loud.’ Call those judgments  out so that you can start to work through where they come from,” Dr. Allen says. 
In this conversation, which was first recorded in 2022 for the Health Disparities podcast, Dr. Allen is joined by 904 resident Sharon LaSure-Roy. They spoke with Movement Is Life’s Sarah Hohman.
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Secret Shopper research shows bias against patients with ‘worse’ insurance

The underlying causes of health disparities are many, and sometimes healthcare providers can exacerbate disparities with how they operate.
Health equity researchers have conducted "secret shopper" studies, revealing how healthcare providers limit appointments — and even treatment recommendations — to people with certain types of insurance.
“Patients with Medicaid were significantly less likely to be offered appointments compared to those with Medicare or private insurance, and in many cases, clinics told us they weren't accepting any new Medicaid patients or that they didn't take Medicaid at all,” says Dr. Daniel Wiznia, Associate Professor of Orthopaedics & Rehabilitation at Yale and a former member of Movement Is Life’s Steering Committee.
“But when we would call back with private insurance, suddenly they have plenty of appointments available for the private insurance patients,” he says.
Wiznia and his colleagues also found that even when Medicaid patients were offered appointments, wait times were often much longer — delays which can have serious consequences. 
“So if a Medicaid patient has to wait six weeks or eight weeks for an appointment, while a private patient just waits maybe a week, that can really impact outcomes, especially for patients with chronic conditions or urgent needs,” he says.
Wiznia joined Movement Is Life’s Dr. Mary O’Connor to discuss these findings in detail. He offers advice to patients who may find themselves in a situation where they’re denied care due to their insurance status and explains how raising reimbursement rates for Medicaid could help address the problem.
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The importance of place: How the non-profit Purpose Built Communities helps create ‘cradle to college pipelines’

What does it take to create healthy neighborhoods that include broad, deep, and permanent pathways to prosperity for low-income families? 
That question is the focus of today’s episode with Carol Redmond Naughton, CEO of Purpose Built Communities based in Atlanta.
“I really have become an  advocate for community development as a way to move the needle on  health outcomes. And I'm not talking about simply putting a kidney dialysis center in the bottom floor of a senior high rise,” Naughton says. “I don't mean to say that that's not a good thing to do, but we've got to move upstream. We've got to be way upstream and be thinking about: How are we building communities and supporting children, so those children 60 years from now will not need kidney dialysis?”
In a conversation that was first published in 2022, Naughton speaks with Movement Is Life’s Dr. Tamara Huff about the difference between access to health care and health outcomes and the importance of addressing the social determinants of health.  
She also calls on all of us to reflect on the systems that have kept people trapped in poverty — especially Black and Brown communities — and consider what it takes to create communities that support a “cradle to college pipeline.” 
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Fostering tomorrow’s healthcare workforce: Opening doors & opening minds

The case for diversity in healthcare professions is strong. Research shows that a diverse healthcare workforce improves health outcomes, particularly for patients of color, and also increases people’s access to care and their perception of the care they receive. 
Physicians of color are more likely to build careers in underserved communities, which can contribute even more toward the goal of reducing healthcare disparities.
So, what does it take to cultivate a strong and diverse health care workforce? On this week’s episode, we gain insights from two knowledgeable guests, who spoke with Dr. Hadiya Green at  Movement Is Life’s annual summit:
Dr. Cheryl Brewster, Senior Executive Dean for Access, Opportunity, and Collaboration and a Professor in the Department of Bioethics, Humanism, and Policy Roseman University College of Medicine
Dr. Jarrod Lockhart, formerly an instructor at Morehouse School of Medicine, now Assistant Vice Provost, Education Outreach & Collaboration at Oregon Health & Science University
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How evidence-based policies can help alleviate poverty and improve health equity

Poverty is a key driver of health disparities. But numerous policies have been shown to help alleviate poverty and improve health equity, according to Dr. Rita Hamad, associate professor of social and behavioral sciences at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.
Hamad says policymakers need to look upstream and identify the root causes of health issues.
“And really recognizing that poverty is one of the major root causes of those issues, and that if we don't address that… those health issues are just going to keep arising and not getting any better,” she says. 
On this episode of the Health Disparities podcast, Hamad speaks with Movement Is Life’s Dr. Charla Johnson about evidence-based policies for alleviating poverty — like the child tax credit, earned income tax credit — and explains how healthcare systems can get more involved in bolstering the social safety net.
Never miss an episode – be sure to subscribe to The Health Disparities podcast from Movement Is Life on Apple Podcasts, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Health equity solutions: A conversation with Morehouse School of Medicine President Dr. Valerie Montgomery Rice

A diverse healthcare workforce is critical to improving outcomes for our diverse nation.
In order to achieve this, there needs to be both a pipeline and a pathway, says Dr. Valerie Montgomery Rice, President and CEO of Morehouse School of Medicine.
“We need students to believe what’s possible in first grade and then chart a path,” she says.
Montgomery Rice says her own love and science and people led her to chart her career pathway that led her into academic medicine. “What if everybody was given that opportunity. What if everybody was told you can be whatever you want to be?”
“Every one of my roles has been about how to develop people to bring their best self to work,” she says.
Although health equity work can be polarized and be perceived as political, Montgomery Rice says Morehouse School of Medicine is committed to leading the creation and advancement of health equity — both through new solutions and through complementing existing ones. 
The heart of her message on health equity: It’s about “giving people what they need, when they need it, to achieve optimal level of health.”
Montgomery Rice spoke with Movement Is Life’s Dr. Carla Harwell for this episode, which was recorded at Movement Is Life’s annual health equity summit.
Never miss an episode – be sure to subscribe to The Health Disparities podcast from Movement Is Life on Apple Podcasts, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts.

How might religion benefit cardiovascular health among Black Americans?

Participating in religious activities appears to benefit cardiovascular health among Black Americans. It’s something we explored in an episode on this podcast a few years back.
Health systems, professional societies and researchers are increasingly recognizing that “faith-based organizations are trusted institutions within underserved communities and that people not only seek spiritual refuge and salvation in these places of worship, but they are also wonderful, trusted vessels to  distribute reliable health information,” says Dr. LaPrincess Brewer, a faculty member in the division of  Preventive Cardiology, department of Cardiovascular Medicine at Mayo Clinic.
“Participating in religious activities from church services to private prayer, as well as holding deep spiritual beliefs are  linked to better cardiovascular health among Black Americans," according to researchers of a 2022 study published in the Journal of the American Heart Association.
The researchers go on to suggest that recognition by health professionals and researchers of the centrality and influence of religiosity and spirituality in the lives of African American adults may serve as a means to address cardiovascular health disparities.
In an episode that was first published in 2023, Movement Is Life’s Dr. Mary O’Connor spoke with Dr. Brewer, whose primary research focus is reducing cardiovascular disease health disparities in racial and ethnic minority populations  and in underserved communities, and Clarence Jones, a community engagement specialist and former director of community engagement at a federally qualified health center in Minneapolis who has extensive experience in  collaborating with community and faith-based partners in promoting community wellness and access to health services. 
Never miss an episode – be sure to subscribe to The Health Disparities podcast from Movement Is Life on Apple Podcasts, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts.
 

The Community health needs assessment: An underappreciated tool

In today’s episode, we explore some big questions about community health — and how hospitals and health care workers can help promote equitable health outcomes in their communities.
The Community Health Needs Assessment, or CHNA, is a  powerful tool for promoting health equity, says Leslie Marshburn, Vice President of Strategy & Population Health at Grady Health System.
“We want to be hearing directly from the individuals that we serve — what they believe their community health needs are,” Marshburn says. The information is coupled with public data, “ideally at the most granular level, like the census track or zip code. And so those national data sets can help inform what the needs are, and then layering that with the community voice through your primary data collection and synthesizing all of that helps you identify your priorities.”
When it comes to improving health outcomes in communities, it’s also critical that health care providers understand health disparities, says Dr. Maura George, an associate professor in the Department of Medicine and an internist at Grady Memorial Hospital in Atlanta, where she also serves as Medical Director of Ethics. 
“I think clinicians who don't know how to recognize disparities are going to perpetuate them, and we can all do that unintentionally,” George says. “I think knowing our own internalized bias, implicit bias is important, because you have to realize how that can interact in the patient care space.”
Marshburn and George joined Movement Is Life’s summit as workshop panelists, and spoke with steering committee member Dr. Zachary Lum for this podcast episode.
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How pollution and climate change impact health disparities

Across the globe and in the U.S., environmental crises loom large and threaten our most vulnerable populations. 
“There's a lot of dying that's happening now, and it's primarily among poor, Black and Brown people,” says Dr. Cheryl Holder, who’s on a personal mission to inspire clinicians to act on climate change. 
Holder explains that a person’s health and well-being is directly impacted by the environment they’re surrounded by.
“In celebrating and recognizing the environment, we recognize that this is how we define humanity, and how we create the environment for us to grow and thrive,” she says.
In honor of Earth Day, which is coming up this month, we’re dipping into our archives to bring you a conversation with Dr. Cheryl Holder. She’s now retired, but at the time this conversation was recorded and produced for the Health Disparities podcast in 2021, Dr. Holder was serving as the Interim Associate Dean for Diversity, Equity and Inclusivity and Community Initiatives, and associate professor at the Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine, Florida International University. 
This episode was originally published in 2021 with host Elise Tolbert.
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