Voting Rights, Election Administration, and Turnout for Racial Minorities

2020 ◽  
pp. 91-110
Author(s):  
Michael Ritter

Race and ethnicity group identity also shape participation in politics, with non-Hispanics whites being the most likely to vote in U.S. elections over time. Can accessible elections shrink turnout inequality between non-Hispanic whites and racial/ethnic minorities (African Americans, Hispanic Americans, and Asian Americans)? Chapter 6 empirically evaluates the impact of convenience voting laws and election administration on the change in the probably of voting in midterm and presidential elections comparing across racial subgroups. The results show that same day registration boosts turnout among non-Hispanics whites, as well as Asian Americans, Hispanics, and African Americans, in presidential and midterm elections. Early in-person voting especially advantages blacks and Hispanics in midterm elections, while absentee/mail voting is found to have similar effects for Asian Americans. Both non-Hispanic whites and racial and ethnic minorities benefit from quality state election administration.

Author(s):  
Rebecca Landy ◽  
Corey D Young ◽  
Martin Skarzynski ◽  
Li C Cheung ◽  
Christine D Berg ◽  
...  

Abstract We examined whether draft 2020 United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) lung-cancer screening recommendations “partially ameliorate racial disparities in screening eligibility” compared to 2013 guidelines, as claimed. Using data from the 2015 National Health Interview Survey, USPSTF-2020 increased eligibility by similar proportions for minorities (97.1%) and Whites (78.3%). Contrary to the intent of USPSTF-2020, the relative disparity (differences in percentages of model-estimated gainable life-years from National Lung Screening Trial-like screening by eligible Whites vs minorities) actually increased from USPSTF-2013 to USPSTF-2020 (African Americans: 48.3%–33.4%=15.0% to 64.5%–48.5%=16.0%; Asian Americans: 48.3%–35.6%=12.7% to 64.5%–45.2%=19.3%; Hispanic Americans: 48.3%–24.8%=23.5% to 64.5%–37.0%=27.5%). However, augmenting USPSTF-2020 with high-benefit individuals selected by the Life-Years From Screening with Computed Tomography (LYFS-CT) model nearly eliminated disparities for African Americans (76.8%–75.5%=1.2%), and improved screening efficiency for Asian/Hispanic Americans, although disparities were reduced only slightly (Hispanic Americans) or unchanged (Asian Americans). Draft USPSTF-2020 guidelines increased the number of eligible minorities versus USPSTF-2013 but may inadvertently increase racial/ethnic disparities. LYFS-CT could reduce disparities in screening eligibility by identifying ineligible people with high predicted benefit, regardless of race/ethnicity.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Theresa Andrasfay ◽  
Noreen Goldman

COVID-19 had a huge mortality impact in the US in 2020 and accounted for the majority of the 1.5-year reduction in 2020 life expectancy at birth. There were also substantial racial/ethnic disparities in the mortality impact of COVID-19 in 2020, with the Black and Latino populations experiencing reductions in life expectancy at birth over twice the reduction experienced by the White population. Despite continued vulnerability of the Black and Latino populations, the hope was that widespread distribution of effective vaccines would mitigate the overall impact and reduce racial/ethnic disparities in 2021. In this study, we use cause-deleted life table methods to estimate the impact of COVID-19 mortality on 2021 US period life expectancy. Our partial-year estimates, based on provisional COVID-19 deaths for January-early October 2021 suggest that racial/ethnic disparities have persisted and that life expectancy at birth in 2021 has already declined by 1.2 years from pre-pandemic levels. Our projected full-year estimates, based on projections of COVID-19 deaths through the end of 2021 from the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, suggest a 1.8-year reduction in US life expectancy at birth from pre-pandemic levels, a steeper decline than the estimates produced for 2020. The reductions in life expectancy at birth estimated for the Black and Latino populations are 1.6-2.4 times the impact for the White population.


Assessment ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 107319112110386
Author(s):  
Violeta J. Rodriguez ◽  
Dominique L. La Barrie ◽  
Miriam C. Zegarac ◽  
Anne Shaffer

The limited inclusion of racial/ethnic minorities in the development and validation of parenting measures limits our understanding of whether parenting constructs are valid in racial and ethnic minorities. Tests of measurement invariance/equivalence (MI/E) of parenting measures can help evaluate the validity of parenting constructs among racial/ethnic minorities. This systematic review summarized studies on MI/E of parenting constructs by race/ethnicity and evaluated the strength of the evidence. A literature search was conducted using various databases and references to retrieve studies from the United States. Indeed, 10 studies were identified that tested for MI/E of eight parenting scales by race/ethnicity. Only one scale showed moderate evidence of MI/E, five showed weak evidence of MI/E, and two showed no evidence of MI/E. Most studies (80%) used factor analytic methods to test for MI/E, but only two studies (20%) examined all levels of invariance. These findings show that differences exist in how racial/ethnic minorities perceive parenting constructs. Further research is needed to develop more inclusive parenting measures, to protect against the ways in which biased measures may pathologize or misrepresent parenting practices among racial/ethnic minorities.


2020 ◽  
pp. 51-68
Author(s):  
Michael Ritter

Chapter 4 evaluates the impact of convenience voting laws (in-person early voting, no-excuse absentee/mail voting, and same day registration) and election administration on individual-level voter turnout change from the 2010 to 2014 midterm elections and the 2008 to 2012 presidential elections using lagged panel models. Results show that non-voters are more likely to become voters when living in states with absentee/mail voting, in-person early voting, same day registration, and high-quality election administration, controlling for other factors. Same day registration is the most important of the three in both midterm and presidential elections, while early voting and absentee/mail voting have the largest effects in midterm elections.


2019 ◽  
Vol 14 (8) ◽  
pp. 1200-1212 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jenny I. Shen ◽  
Kevin F. Erickson ◽  
Lucia Chen ◽  
Sitaram Vangala ◽  
Lynn Leng ◽  
...  

Background and objectivesWe investigated whether the recent growth in home dialysis use was proportional among all racial/ethnic groups and also whether there were changes in racial/ethnic differences in home dialysis outcomes.Design, setting, participants, & measurementsThis observational cohort study of US Renal Data System patients initiating dialysis from 2005 to 2013 used logistic regression to estimate racial/ethnic differences in home dialysis initiation over time, and used competing risk models to assess temporal changes in racial/ethnic differences in home dialysis outcomes, specifically: (1) transfer to in-center hemodialysis (HD), (2) mortality, and (3) transplantation.ResultsOf the 523,526 patients initiating dialysis from 2005 to 2013, 55% were white, 28% black, 13% Hispanic, and 4% Asian. In the earliest era (2005–2007), 8.0% of white patients initiated dialysis with home modalities, as did a similar proportion of Asians (9.2%; adjusted odds ratio [aOR], 0.95; 95% confidence interval [95% CI], 0.86 to 1.05), whereas lower proportions of black [5.2%; aOR, 0.71; 95% CI, 0.66 to 0.76] and Hispanic (5.7%; aOR, 0.83; 95% CI, 0.86 to 0.93) patients did so. Over time, home dialysis use increased in all groups and racial/ethnic differences decreased (2011–2013: 10.6% of whites, 8.3% of blacks [aOR, 0.81; 95% CI, 0.77 to 0.85], 9.6% of Hispanics [aOR, 0.94; 95% CI, 0.86 to 1.00], 14.2% of Asians [aOR, 1.04; 95% CI, 0.86 to 1.12]). Compared with white patients, the risk of transferring to in-center HD was higher in blacks, similar in Hispanics, and lower in Asians; these differences remained stable over time. The mortality rate was lower for minority patients than for white patients; this difference increased over time. Transplantation rates were lower for blacks and similar for Hispanics and Asians; over time, the difference in transplantation rates between blacks and Hispanics versus whites increased.ConclusionsFrom 2005 to 2013, as home dialysis use increased, racial/ethnic differences in initiating home dialysis narrowed, without worsening rates of death or transfer to in-center HD in minority patients, as compared with white patients.


Author(s):  
Rodney L. Terry ◽  
Laurie Schwede ◽  
Ryan King ◽  
Mandi Martinez ◽  
Jennifer Hunter Childs

Previous research has shown differential counts by race and ethnicity across several recent United States decennial censuses. This article presents findings from a 2010 Census ethnographic evaluation with a record check, conducted to identify factors affecting enumeration among racial/ethnic groups. In eight sites targeted to major racial/ethnic groups, ethnographers observed live census interviews and assessed where persons should have been counted. In the record check, housing unit rosters were matched with four data sources to identify inconsistencies in where to count persons. Ethnographic themes that contributed to record check inconsistencies include respondent access difficulty, language issues, and cultural issues. Ways to improve enumeration include improving access to hard-to-reach respondents and increasing the cultural awareness of enumerators.


2017 ◽  
Vol 27 (3) ◽  
pp. 301-309 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tingting Yao ◽  
Michael K Ong ◽  
Wendy Max ◽  
Courtney Keeler ◽  
Yingning Wang ◽  
...  

ObjectiveTo evaluate the impact of cigarette prices on adult smoking for four US racial/ethnic groups: whites, African–Americans, Asians and Hispanics.MethodsWe analysed pooled cross-sectional data from the 2006/2007 and 2010/2011 Tobacco Use Supplement to the Current Population Survey (n=339 921 adults aged 18+) and cigarette price data from the Tax Burden on Tobacco. Using a two-part econometric model of cigarette demand that controlled for sociodemographic characteristics, state-level antismoking sentiment, local-level smoke-free air laws and monthly indicator, we estimated for each racial/ethnic group the price elasticities of smoking participation, smoking intensity and total demand for cigarettes.ResultsSmoking prevalence for whites, African–Americans, Asians and Hispanics during the study period was 18.3%, 16.1%, 8.2% and 11.3%, respectively. The price elasticity of smoking participation was statistically significant for whites, African–Americans, Asians and Hispanics at −0.26, –0.10, −0.42 and −0.11, respectively. The price elasticity of smoking intensity was statistically significant among whites (−0.22) and African–Americans (−0.17). Overall, the total price elasticity of cigarette demand was statistically significant for all racial/ethnic groups: 0.48 for whites, −0.27 for African–Americans, −0.22 for Asians and −0.15 for Hispanics.ConclusionsOur results suggest that raising cigarette prices, such as via tobacco tax increases, would result in reduced cigarette consumption for all racial/ethnic groups. The magnitude of the effect and the impact on cessation and reduced smoking intensity differ across these groups.


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