'The Color Of Care' Exposes Racial Inequities In Healthcare System
MIAMI (CBSMiami) -- The COVID-19 pandemic brought racial inequities in our healthcare system to the forefront. Now, a new documentary "The Color of Care," which is executive produced by Oprah Winfrey, exposes those disparities.
"The Color of Care" exposes a national health crisis, one brought to light by the COVID-19 pandemic. It features firsthand accounts from those who lost loved ones to the coronavirus. It also traces the origins of racial health disparities to chronicle how people of color suffer from systemically substandard healthcare in the United States.
Yance Ford is the director. "I have to say that the history that's in the film about where inequities in medicine come from. That history was new to me as it will be to anyone who watches the film on Sunday, and so to learn those lessons was difficult," said Ford.
Healthcare experts, like Dr. Hetty Cunningham, speak to how embedded racism plays a role in healthcare. She says the documentary goes beyond the statistics.
"Every time you hear a story, you're reminded of the humanity behind the numbers," said Dr. Cunningham.
The Smithsonian Channel and Oprah Winfrey's Harpo Productions partnered to release the documentary that looks to be the start of a reckoning around health equity.
"I think that if we can start to get to a place where we all see each other first as humans and deserving of the kind of care that we would like to receive, that we can actually make some headway on this," said Ford.
"I think that our country places have very high premium on fairness. We see ourselves as a, as a, as a fair and equal society, and this, this film really starts to say, maybe we need to take a closer look at that," said Dr. Cunningham.
They want the film to create a deeper understanding of what changes are needed to serve all.
"The Color of Care" is launching a year-long campaign on the topic aimed at bringing together impacted communities with medical schools, healthcare workers and policy makers to advance more equitable solutions.
