ABSTRACT
African Americans and Latinos are the two largest ethnic minority groups in the United States, encompassing approximately 26.7 percent of the total U. S. population (13.3 percent and 13.4 percent, respectively), and this figure is projected to increase by nearly 27 percent (9.8 percent and 17.1 percent) by the year 2050 (U.S. Census Bureau, 2004). These populations have become exceptionally diverse, particularly with the recent influx of people from the Caribbean, Africa, Mexico, and both Central and South America. The significant growth and demographic changes projected into, at least, the middle of the twenty-first century, demand that attention be given to compelling evidence connecting ethnicity to persistent and often increasing disparities, manifested in racially disproportionate illness and death. Unquestionably, persistent ethnicity-related health disparities have been recognized as a national concern (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services [USDHHS], 2001).
