Diversity

The Council of State Governments, in collaboration with ODEP’s State Exchange on Employment & Disability, published a report designed to inform policymakers on “state as a model employer” policies and practices to recruit, hire and retain workers with disabilities. The report explores strategies states can use to promote diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility principles within the public-sector workforce.

To best meet the health-related needs of Medicaid and CHIP beneficiaries, and address equity within these programs and services, Medicaid leaders should reflect the varied populations they serve. Medicaid leaders are more likely to relate to the needs and challenges of their members when they share the identities of enrollees. This blog post and infographic from CHCS highlight key strategies for diversifying the Medicaid leadership pipeline, drawing from a CHCS report developed with support from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

The National Alliance for Caregiving has published a 2021 national report, "Caregiving in a Diverse America: Beginning to Understand the Systemic Challenges Facing Family Caregivers," which was based on results of the Caregiving in the U.S. 2020 study. The report analyzes the experience of over 800 caregiver respondents of different socioeconomic background, sexual orientation, and gender. The report also includes additional literature on diverse caregiving and research recommendations.

The National Aging and Disability Transportation Center released the report of its Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Transportation Survey, which documents the needs and experiences of older adults, adults with disabilities and caregivers from historically marginalized and underserved communities.

To celebrate Older Americans Month, ACL has published their 2020 Profile of Older Americans report. This report highlights the demographics and experiences of older adults throughout the last year of the COVID-19 pandemic. The report captures trends in workforce participation, diversity, mental health and economic disparities across the community.

In 2016, the Diverse Elders Coalition partnered with Caring Across Generations to collect nearly 5,000 comments from our communities about what individuals need to age with health and dignity. Comments were collected in six languages from all 50 states and provided a snapshot of the challenges of aging in communities of color, LGBT communities, and American Indian/Alaska Native communities. These comments were synthesized into a series of recommendations for policymakers and service providers.