Baltimore, MD -- The University of Maryland, Baltimore County and the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene announce the official opening of The Institute for Racial and Ethnic Health Studies, which will serve as a central resource for assembling, documenting and assessing the health care status of African Americans and other racial/ethnic populations in Maryland.

The Institute, located within the Center for Health Program Development and Management on UMBC's campus, will serve as a coordinating center for a wide range of public health and medical studies, particularly those relating to the health impacts of managed care on these populations. Its initial project will include an assessment of the impact of Maryland's HealthChoice program on the health status of Medicaid beneficiaries who are members of racial and ethnic minority groups.

"Special studies have been done periodically about the health of Maryland's African American population, but there has been no consistent effort, prior to the work of the Governor's Commission on Black and Minority Health in 1987, or since, to research existing health differentials among racial/ethnic population sub-groups. Nor has there been regular monitoring of selected health status indicators, or studies conducted to seek explanations of utilization disparities from the perspective of health services delivery," states Dr. Julia B. Anderson, director of The Institute. "The Institute will address these issues."

"The Institute for Racial and Ethnic Health Studies will assist in strengthening the partnerships between state and local governments, the business community and all other health care providers that will ensure healthy people and communities throughout Maryland," states Dr. Martin P. Wasserman, secretary of Maryland's Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.

An inaugural conference to launch The Institute and articulate its main research goals will be held Monday, January 12 from 8:30am - 3:30pm on the UMBC campus. Speakers will include UMBC President Freeman A. Hrabowski, III, Dr. Wasserman, and Dr. Clay Simpson, deputy assistant secretary for Minority Health, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

For additional information, call 410.455.6854.