Since, in part, April is recognized by DHHS as National Minority Health Month (this year's theme is "Accelerating Health Equity in the Nation") it is thoroughly appropriate to discuss Professor Daniel Dawes's recent work, "150 Years of Obamacare." Professor Dawes's work begins with a discussion of efforts since the Civil War to reform national health care policy beginning with the 1865 Freedmen's Bureau Act. The work moreover provides an accounting of his and others efforts to lobby successfully for health equity provisions in passing the 2010 Affordable Care Act ( ACA).
During this 31-minute conversation, Professor Dawes discusses passage of the ACA, i.e., "Obamacare,", e.g., Republican opposition to the legislation and moreover the importance of the sixty plus health equity-related provisions in the legislation and what are his priorities for furthering health care equity or reducing disparities in health care delivery and outcomes - that sadly remain pronounced.
Attorney and Professor Daniel E. Dawes is the Executive Director of Health Policy and External Affairs at the Morehouse School of Medicine and a Lecturer within Morehouse's Satcher Health Leadership Institute and the Department of Community Health and Preventive Medicine. He founded and chairs the Working Group on Health Disparities and Health Reform and is the co-founder of the Health Equity Leadership and Exchange Network (HELEN). Previously, Professor Dawes held positions with the Premier Healthcare Alliance, the American Psychological Association and served on the Senate HELP (Health, Education, Labor and Pensions) Committee under Senator Edward Kennedy. He is the recipient of numerous award including the Congressional Black Caucus Leadership and Advocacy Award. He earned his JD from the University of Nebraska and his BS from Nova Southeastern University.
For more information concerning Professor Dawes's work, go to: https://jhupbooks.press.jhu.edu/content/150-years-obamacare.
Daniel Dawes Discusses His Recent Book,"150 Years of Obamacare" (April 27th)