HEALTH

The fight for equity and quality extends to health care for African Americans. Long before it became a broad based public concern, efforts were underway to ensure that economic and social barriers would not lead to increasingly severe health crises in the minority community. In the early 1930's a national Health Committee was organized under the leadership of Dr. Montague Cobb.

Today, the NAACP's Health Division has been leading the effort to inform and educate the community about health care costs; quality and access; disease prevention; health care professions and training; and youth and elderly health issues. The national health coordinator works with the National Health Committee to create and implement projects, evaluate and draft policy statements, and represent the NAACP at conferences and workshops, and on advisory boards.