Today’s dialogue in medical journals and the mainstream press on health disparities in American society increasingly focuses on individuals’ genetic predispositions to disease. More and more, race is interjected into this dialogue as scientists link genes of certain racial groups to medical conditions while pharmaceutical companies increasingly seek to medicate those conditions. Unfortunately, during this process the focus on reducing and preventing racial health disparities – which in large part can be attributed to social determinants – becomes obscured.
The Center for American Progress will explore these trends and their implications for addressing racial health disparities by hosting a public dialogue. Jamie Brooks, co-author of "Geneticizing Disease: Implications for Racial Health Disparities," which will be released at the event, will provide an overview of the issue and the paper’s findings. Law professor Lisa Crooms will follow with a legal and racial perspective on the implications of “geneticizing” disease. And in closing, Dr. Nicole Lurie will discuss the known non-medical determinants of health, such as environment, insurance status, and other socio-economic factors. Meredith King, co-author of the paper, will moderate the discussion to follow.
Panelists:
Jamie Brooks, Project Director on Race, Health, and Justice, Center for Genetics and Society
Lisa Crooms, Law Professor, Howard University
Nicole Lurie, Director of the Center for Population Health and Health Disparities and Co-Director of the RAND Center for Domestic and International Health Security, RAND
Moderated by:
Meredith King, Health Policy Analyst, Center for American Progress