African-Americans Today: A Mixed Picture of Health and Wealth
New survey details strengths and challenges facing Blacks.
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A Snapshot of Black America - African-Americans’ Lives Today, a new report from NPR, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and Harvard School of Public Health, provides insight into the financial make-up and overall well-being of the Black community. More than 1,000 African-Americans aged 18 and older were surveyed in the report. Keep reading for highlights, and click here to read it in its entirety. —Britt Middleton (Photo: Monashee Frantz/Getty Images)
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Things Are Getting Better for Some - Fifty-three percent of respondents said that their lives in general have gotten better in recent years compared to 10 percent who say that their lives have gotten worse. Eighty-six percent said they are satisfied with their lives overall. (Photo: Purestock/Getty Images)
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Employment Concerns - However, 44 percent of employed African-Americans said they have concerns that they or someone in their household might be out of work and looking for a job in the next 12 months. (Photo: Inti St Clair/Getty Images)
Photo: Inti St Clair / Getty Images
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Uneasy Times - Similarly, 41 percent of unemployed African-Americans surveyed were concerned that another member of their household would lose his or her job. (Photo: Jose Luis Pelaez Inc/Getty Images)
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Medical Bills Rising - Additionally, about 30 percent said that in the past 12 months, they or a family member have had difficulties paying for doctor and hospital bills. Of this group, 76 percent said they ended up forgoing medical attention for financial reasons. (Photo: Blend Images/Hill Street Studios/Getty Images)
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Health Concerns Grow - Nearly half (45 percent) of people surveyed said they are not confident that they would have enough money or health insurance to pay for a major illness, compared to 48 percent who said the same in 2005. (Photo: Bruce Ayres/Getty Images)
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Health Concerns Among Families - Respondents said high blood pressure/stroke (20 percent) and diabetes (19 percent) were their families’ leading health concerns. (Photo: Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
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Finances - Fifty percent of people described their finances as "not so good" or "poor," compared to 49 percent who said "excellent" or "good." These numbers are unchanged from when this question was last asked in 2001, before the recession began, researchers said. (Photo: Stockbyte/Getty Images)
Photo: GettyImages
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Dealing With Racism - Researchers said that experiencing racism "at least a few times a year" is something the majority of Blacks experience: being treated with less courtesy or respect than other people (46 percent), receiving poorer service than other people at restaurants or stores (45 percent), people acting as if they think the respondent is not smart (40 percent), people acting as if they are afraid of the respondent (23 percent), or being threatened or harassed (16 percent). (Photo: Image Source / Getty Images)
Photo: Image Source / Getty Images
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Racial Prejudice - Fifty percent of those who admitted to having one or more of those experiences said the main reason was racial prejudice. Altogether, about 36 percent of African-Americans said they have had at least one of these experiences as a result of racism. (Photo: Marcy Maloy/Getty Images)