Aetna Announces Members of Racial and Ethnic Equality External Advisory Committee

Aetna (NYSE:AET) announced today the members of its Racial and Ethnic Equality Advisory Committee. Aetna was the first national health benefits company to launch an integrated business and philanthropic approach to collect data and facilitate approaches to improve the quality of care for members with certain racial and ethnic backgrounds. The committee will help take Aetna’s foundational work to the next level by identifying new initiatives focused on specific interventions. "This committee includes some of the country’s most distinguished medical providers and health benefits professionals, and each has implemented programs in their communities to impact racial and ethnic disparities in health care,” said Troyen A. Brennan, M.D., Aetna’s chief medical officer. "Their experiences and expertise will be critical to furthering Aetna’s commitment to improving the quality of care and health outcomes for all patients.” Studies show that patients with certain racial and ethnic backgrounds receive lower-quality health care than other patients, even when insurance status, income, age and severity of conditions are comparable. "Aetna has been a leader in their commitment to eliminating racial and ethnic inequalities in health care, and that dedication is why so many talented individuals are participating on this committee," said Joseph Betancourt, M.D., M.P.H., director of The Disparities Solutions Center; senior scientist, Massachusetts General Hospital Institute for Health Policy; and chair of Aetna’s Racial and Ethnic Equality Advisory Committee. "I feel strongly that this new committee can help develop and implement actions and solutions at the community level, where we will be able to see real results." Aetna has developed a coordinated, multidimensional approach to address health issues that are more prevalent among various ethnic and racial minority populations. This includes the collection of race and ethnicity information from more than 5.2 million Aetna members who voluntarily provide the data; a breast health initiative to identify African American and Hispanic women who have not obtained their annual screening mammograms; and studies with two academic institutions to examine barriers that may be contributing to the disparity in outcomes of treatment for diabetes among African Americans and Latinos, and hypertension among African Americans. Results from these studies are expected at the beginning of 2008. Other members of the advisory committee include: Jill Berger, vice president, Health and Welfare, Marriott International (Bethesda, MD) Jorge Girotti, Ph.D., University of Illinois at Chicago College of Medicine, department of Medical Education Linda Green, M.D., chief of Ob-Gyn, Northwest Regional Medical Center (Margate, FL) Carol R. Horowitz, M.D., M.P.H., departments of Health Policy and Medicine, Mount Sinai School of Medicine (New York, NY) Audrietta C. Izlar, M.S., M.B.A., senior staff consultant, Verizon Corporate Benefits (Basking Ridge, NJ) Elizabeth Jacobs, M.D., M.P.P., Stroger Hospital of Cook County & Rush University Medical Center Division of General Medicine (Chicago, IL) David E. Kester, Harris County, director of Human Resources and Risk Management (Houston, TX) Martha A. Medrano, M.D., M.P.H., associate dean of Continuing Medical Education; director of the Medical Hispanic Center of Excellence, professor of Psychiatry, Pediatrics and Family Community Medicine, University of Texas Health Center at San Antonio (San Antonio, TX) Leo S. Morales, M.D., Ph.D., codirector, UCLA Resource Center for Minority Aging Research; associate professor, UCLA department of Medicine/Division of General Internal Medicine and Health Services Research and department of Health Services (Los Angeles, CA) John Rich, M.D., M.P.H., professor and chair, Health Management and Policy, Drexel University School of Public Health (Philadelphia, PA) Thomas D. Sequist, M.D., M.P.H., Brigham & Women’s Hospital, department of General Medicine (Boston, MA) Barbara Staggers, M.D., M.P.H., Children’s Hospital & Research Center (Oakland, CA) Since 2001, Aetna and the Aetna Foundation have awarded more than $15.5 million, including more than $5.5 million in 2006, in grants for programs that identify and implement practical means of reducing or eliminating racial and ethnic disparities in health status and the delivery of health care. The Aetna Foundation is the independent charitable and philanthropic arm of Aetna Inc. Last year, the company began offering health care providers, including physicians and nurses, and its internal clinical employees free access to the online, evidence-based courses, Quality Interactions: a Patient-Based Approach to Cross-Cultural Care®. Physicians and nurses completing the courses can earn Continuing Medical Education (CME) and Continuing Education Unit (CEU) credits respectively. In addition, Aetna has received various honors for its work, including recognition in 2005 and 2006 by the National Committee for Quality Insurance (NCQA) for reducing cultural gaps in health care access. In 2006, Aetna was the only insurer to receive the prestigious "Recognizing Innovation in Multicultural Health Care Award" from the NCQA. Aetna also is a member of the National Health Plan Collaborative, a groundbreaking effort to improve the quality of health care for certain racial and ethnic populations. The Collaborative brings together major health insurance companies and works in partnership with organizations from the public and private sectors. About Aetna Aetna is one of the nation’s leading diversified health care benefits companies, serving approximately 34.9 million people with information and resources to help them make better informed decisions about their health care. Aetna offers a broad range of traditional and consumer-directed health insurance products and related services, including medical, pharmacy, dental, behavioral health, group life, long-term care and disability plans, and medical management capabilities. Our customers include employer groups, individuals, college students, part-time and hourly workers, health plans and government-sponsored plans. www.aetna.com