Last week, the Office of Minority Health and Health Equity, sponsored by Ocoee Representative Kamia Brown, was signed into law by Governor Ron DeSantis. The legislation, HB 183, aims to close the gap in ethnic and minority health disparities by outlining the focus areas of the Office of Minority Health and Health Equity (OMHHE). The Office of Minority Health has received $9.2 million in funding in this year’s budget.
“Right now, minorities are not receiving equitable healthcare and a lot of it has to do with a lack of outreach and accessibility,” said Representative Brown. “Through this, I believe that we can begin to outline the causes and work to close the gap in ethnic and minority health disparities.”
The new law requires that the OMHHE include specific information on their website, including information and links to resources for minority populations, resources for providers, and data on health disparities and issues affecting minority populations.
Rep. Brown’s legislation passed unanimously on the House floor. She also filed three other bills which aim to help improve minority health issues, including those that address black maternal health disparities. The bills are: HB 183 Office of Minority Health and Health Equity, HB 1381 Maternal Health Care Outcomes, and HB 1383 Maternal Health Care Services.
“Our mothers are the backbone of our society; they lift us up and we should do our part in doing the same. Black mothers and babies need our support and our protection and I will do everything in my power to ensure that this happens,” Rep. Brown said in April as she announced Black Maternal Health Awareness Week. “Regardless of the color of their skin, every mama deserves the right to live to be a mama.”
