Celebrated every year in April, National Minority Health Month:
- Raises awareness of the higher rates of early death and illness among people from racial and ethnic minority groups.
- Encourages action through health education, early detection, and better control of disease complications.
National Minority Health Month traces its roots to 1915, when Booker T. Washington established National Negro Health Week.
In 2002, the U.S. Congress supported National Minority Health Month with a concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 388) stating that “a National Minority Health and Health Disparities Month should be established to promote educational efforts on the health problems currently facing minorities and other health disparity populations.”
The resolution encouraged “all health organizations and Americans to conduct appropriate programs and activities to promote healthfulness in minority and other health disparity communities.”
The theme for National Minority Health Month 2023 was Better Health Through Better Understanding.
Together, we can reduce health disparities and help ensure a healthy life for all by raising awareness of how important it is to improve the health of racial and ethnic minority communities.
Reference Source
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (2023, March 30). National Minority Health Month. National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities. Retrieved April 3, 2023, from https://www.nimhd.nih.gov/programs/edu-training/nmhm/
