The Value and Interpretation of Race and Ethnicity Data in the Era of Global Migration: A Change Is in Order

This article discusses the current trends for collecting race/ethnicity data and other social determinants of health, which evolved from the 1978 Office of Management and Budget directive “Race and Ethnic Standards for Federal Statistics and Administrative Reporting.” The article comments on the inability of the current system to capture the nuance necessary to depict and address health inequities within the United States, and advocates for the immediate adoption of collecting primary/preferred language and country of birth/origin to capture more complete data on individuals.