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This week

Editor's note

This week, we are focusing on a question that affects millions of Black families: why does the American healthcare system consistently underestimate Black patients' pain? From obstetric complications dismissed as exaggerated to sickle cell crises undertreated in emergency rooms, the data on pain bias in medicine are now overwhelming. Our lead story this week reports the research in depth and speaks to the Black clinicians building the evidence base to change it. If this reporting matters to you, share it and sign up for our newsletter below.

From our editor, Simone Abara, May 19, 2026

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Black LGBTQ+ Health

Black LGBTQ+ people face the sharpest within-Black health disparities in the United States. Black men who have sex with men …

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Black Women's Health

Black women in the United States face the widest maternal mortality gap in the high-income world. In 2023, the Black …

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Black Men's Health

Black men develop heart failure at a median age of 39, two decades before white peers, per the CARDIA cohort …

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Kids and Teens

Approximately 1 in 365 Black or African American babies is born with sickle cell disease, and about 1 in 13 …

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Seniors

Black seniors are Medicare-enrolled at similar rates to white seniors but receive less hospice, more intensive end-of-life procedures, and fewer …

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Data

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Chronic Disease

1 in 365

Black American births inherit sickle cell disease, making it the most common genetic disease in the Black community

Updated April 1, 2026

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2.4M

Black Americans fell into the Medicaid coverage gap in states that have not expanded, losing access to subsidized coverage

Updated March 30, 2026

View data Maternal & Reproductive

3.3×

Black women die from pregnancy-related causes at 3.3 times the rate of white women

Updated March 15, 2026

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Policy

Health Policy Watch

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Active Federal

H.R. 3888

PFAS Clean Water Act

Environmental justice research consistently shows Black and low-income communities bear disproportionate PFAS exposure. A 2021 Nature Communications study …

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Critical Federal

H.R. 567

Medicaid Work Requirements Bill

Black adults have lower rates of employer-sponsored insurance and higher Medicaid enrollment rates relative to white adults. In …

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Active Federal

H.R. 2234

Momnibus Act 2025

Black women die in childbirth at 3.3 times the rate of white women in the United States (CDC …

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Health Reference

Conditions A, Z

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Alzheimer's Disease

Neurology

2x

Alzheimer's disease is a progressive brain disorder that destroys memory, language, judgment, and the …

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Anxiety Disorders

Mental Health

1 in 10

Anxiety disorders include generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), panic disorder, social anxiety disorder, specific phobias, …

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APOL1-Mediated Kidney Disease

Kidney / Renal

~13% of African Americans carry two high-risk APOL1 variants

APOL1-mediated kidney disease is a genetic kidney condition driven by two specific variants in …

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Asthma

Respiratory

7.7x

In 2021 the asthma death rate among non-Hispanic Black children was 7.7 per million, …

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Atopic Dermatitis on Black Skin

Dermatology

19.3%

Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a chronic, relapsing inflammatory skin disease driven by skin-barrier dysfunction …

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Atrial Fibrillation

Cardiovascular

~2x

A 63-year-old Black woman walks into a clinic with palpitations and gets told she's …

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