Health Equity Digest – April 2023: The Climate Crisis & The National LGBT Cancer Network Responds to CMS

Welcome to a glimpse inside Real Chemistry’s Health Equity Digest, a monthly summary of relevant highlights and emerging trends in today’s complex, ever-evolving health equity space.

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The Climate Crisis

The climate crisis has been described as the greatest threat to global public health – it can impact respiratory and allergy-related illnesses; heart disease and cancer; mental health complications; food-, insect-, and water-borne diseases; and death and disability resulting from extreme weather events. These threats also disproportionately impact vulnerable populations in society. It’s important to understand climate as a social determinant of health. April 22 marks the 53rd observance of Earth Day.

This month marks 9 years of The Flint Water crisis and activists are still calling for change. The water supply has continued to cause health issues for residents. The unsafe water supply is causing physical health issues like rashes, bacterial infections and harm to reproductive health, and taking a toll on residents, many of which are now living with post-traumatic stress disorder and depression. A quarter of Flint residents met the criteria for PTSD, 22% are experiencing depression and 14% were found to have both disorders, according to a study published by JAMA.

• In February, 50 derailed train cars caused a days-long fire in East Palestine, Ohio – ten of which contained hazardous chemicals that released toxic fumes. There are many potential health risks as residents deal with long-term chronic exposure. The CDC has continued to investigate what health risks are arising from the dangerous fumes.

• More than 2 millionAmericans live without basic indoor plumbing. Jackson, Mississippi – a predominately Black city – was left without safe drinking water for weeks. In addition to Flint, Benton Harbor is another Michigan city that is facing severe lead contamination in its drinking water. West Baltimore currently has E. coli bacteria contaminating the water. There is currently a judicial battle discussing the Navajo Nation’s water rights as it pertains to the Colorado River.

• Long burdened by environmental racism, activists in Memphis are turning the tide: Black women in a Memphis neighborhood are leading efforts to treat people harmed by toxic neighborhoods to prevent future damage. Between 1942 and 1989, the Department of Defense dumped hazardous waste at the Defense Distribution Depot in Memphis Tennessee, including gas bombs, chemical agents and medical waste, all polluting the air and harming nearby communities to this day. The waste has contaminated groundwater with chemicals including arsenic, lead, chromium and nickel, among others. Unfortunately, this instance is not unique, as communities of color all over America are facing environmental racism. Environment is a key factor and determinant of someone’s health and wellbeing. Also read: ‘Cancer alley’ residents say they are victims of environmental racism in new lawsuit.

The National LGBT Cancer Network Responds to CMS Policy Changes

Real Chemistry’s Market Access team recently provided editorial support for The National LGBT Cancer Network’s response to a HEDIS public comment regarding health policy changes that may be implemented in all CMS value-based care programs. Transgender and gender-diverse populations currently face access barriers and outcomes disparities in cancer care. With that in mind, Real Chemistry’s Tess Donckels, Theresa Schmidt, Tom Valuck, and Nina Regenold helped the LGBT Cancer Network and other organizational signers voice strong support for efforts to advance inclusion and healthcare equity among transgender and gender-diverse populations in quality of care. The response emphasized support for proposed modifications to cancer screening measures to be inclusive of transgender and gender-diverse populations, recommended other improvements to support inclusivity, and encouraged publicly reporting disparities in breast and cervical cancer screening across sexual orientation, gender identity, and sexual characteristics categories. The response was signed by 35 organizations.

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