Hologic Announces $20-Million Initiative to Address Racial Health Disparities

In a $20-million, multi-year move, Hologic, Inc., announced Tuesday it is partnering with Black Women’s Health Imperative, National Alliance for Hispanic Health, and RAD-AID to attack the racial disparities that exist for women in the U.S. healthcare system.

Through Project Health Equality (PHE), this group will pour time and resources into improving access to care, augmenting awareness and education, and conducting more race-specific research. It is an effort designed to create culturally competent care and improve public policy so Black and Hispanic women can get the healthcare services they need.

“Our goal is to end the disconnect between the care Black and Hispanic women receive and the care they should receive,” said Karleen Oberton, Hologic’s chief financial officer. “Project Health Equality is about doing the big, bold work necessary to create equity in the here and now that can reverberate across women’s lives and society for generations to come.”

Currently, Black and Hispanic women face significant healthcare hurdles in the United States. Not only are Black women 40 percent more likely to die from breast cancer, but they area also twice as likely as white women to die from cervical cancer. They also experience three times the number of fibroids as other racial groups. In addition, Hispanic women are 40 percent more likely to receive a cervical cancer diagnosis, and they are 20 percent more likely to die from the disease.

To help improve this situation, through PHE, Hologic and RAD-AID plan to partner with Federally Qualified Health Care Centers, local community health clinics, and tertiary care institutions to deliver state-of-the-art care – from screenings to treatment – to women in underserved areas.

With Black Women’s Health Imperative and the National Alliance for Hispanic Health, the company is creating a dedicated website, printed materials, social media assets, and celebrity partnership that can help healthcare professionals, policymakers, and community health workers meet the needs of these groups.

And, lastly, Hologic plans to conduct race-specific research that can lead to actionable insights into cultural, social, and economic disparities.

Although Hologic has a long history of improving healthcare services for women, making an actionable change for women in racial minority groups will take collaboration, said company leaders.

“We cannot reach the goals of PHE without partnering with other effective organizations whose values, vision, and expertise complement our own, and who have unique insights into these communities,” said Meg Eckenroad, Hologic’s vice president of women’s health. “Our ongoing partnerships with the Black Women’s Health Imperative, the National Alliance for Hispanic Health, and RAD-AID will be critical to our success.”

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