Because of findings from a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation funded study by the Dartmouth Atlas group, RWJ decided to launch a three-year, $300 million initiative aimed at closing the regional gap. (Source: “Research Finds Wide Disparities in Health Care by Race and Region,” New York Times, June 4). This study examined Medicare claims for evidence of racial and geographic disparities and found that on a variety of quality indices, blacks typically were less likely to receive recommended care than whites within a given region. But the most striking disparities were found from place to place, creating a larger impact on health care disparities than race.
Cincinnati and Cleveland are among the 14 communities selected to participate in the initiative. This project will be the largest effort to improve health care quality ever undertaken by a charity in the United States. Its purpose is to better understand and confront the causes of regional variations by focusing its spending on 14 regions. The other areas selected for the grants are Detroit; Humboldt County, Calif.; Kansas City, Mo.; Maine; Memphis; Minnesota; Seattle; south central Pennsylvania; western Michigan; western New York; Willamette Valley in Oregon; and Wisconsin.
