Pandemic’s Impact on Health Care Quality by Race, Ethnicity, Language, and Country of Birth Is Still Evident, Despite Improved Performance in 2021

November 7, 2022

New report provides data to support health equity investment

Health care quality improved in 2021 for a core set of measures across categories defined by race, Hispanic ethnicity, language, and country of birth, according to a new report from MN Community Measurement (MNCM). The measures include care for chronic conditions like diabetes, heart disease, asthma, and depression, along with preventive care screenings for cancer and depression.

“The good news is that we saw many improvements in quality by race, ethnicity, language, and country of birth,” said Julie Sonier, President and CEO of MNCM. “The bad news is that we still haven’t made up ground that was lost in the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, and we still have persistent disparities in quality and outcomes between groups.”

Using one of the most comprehensive sources of data on health care disparities in the nation, MNCM’s new report provides an update on health care disparities by race, ethnicity, language, and country of origin for Minnesota as a whole, with separate appendices detailing medical group-level results by race/ethnicity , language , and country of origin.

Key Findings

The report documents continued wide disparities in health care quality and outcomes by race, ethnicity, language, and country of origin using data collected by MNCM in 2022 that reflects care provided in 2021. Key findings include the following:

  • Groups that are most likely to have quality performance rates that are lower than the statewide average include Black, Indigenous/Native, Hispanic/Latinx; speakers of Hmong, Somali, or Spanish; and patients born in Laos, Mexico, or Somalia.
  • For many of these groups, the measure with the largest disparities compared to the statewide average is colorectal cancer screening, with rates that are 15 to 40 percentage points below the statewide average. This has important health impacts, because colorectal cancer is the second leading cause of death from cancer in the U.S., and early detection and treatment is associated with higher survival and lower treatment cost. 
  • Despite improved performance for several quality measures in 2021 compared to 2020, results for many groups remain statistically below their 2019 rates. This is true for the population as a whole and for Black, White, Not Hispanic/Latinx, English-speaking, and U.S.-born. Some smaller subpopulations such as Indigenous/Native and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander also have lower rates for many measures in 2021 compared to 2019, but the changes were not statistically significant due to smaller numbers of people included in the measures.
  • One bright spot with statewide improvement and improvement within many subpopulations is adolescent mental health screening. The statewide average performance for this measure in 2021 was 91.2 percent, compared to 88.7 percent in 2019. Rates for nearly all subpopulations improved between 2019 and 2021, with some of the lowest gaps between groups of any quality measure.

“As an organization that brings together data from across the state to drive improvement in health care, MNCM is proud of the role that we play in shining a spotlight on disparities and helping to drive improvement,” said Sonier. “The data that we produce calls attention to this important issue and helps to drive investment on many fronts to make progress toward health equity.”

About MN Community Measurement MN Community Measurement is a nonprofit organization dedicated to empowering health care decision makers with meaningful data to drive improvement. A trusted source of health care data since 2005, MNCM is a statewide resource for timely, comparable information on health care quality, cost, and equity. Learn more at www.mncm.org.


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October 20, 2026
MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. — October 20, 2026 — MN Community Measurement (MNCM) today announced that it has completed its acquisition of Koble-MN's health information exchange (HIE) business line and the MNSHINE brand from The Koble Group. On November 1, MNCM will officially change its legal name to Minnesota Statewide Health Information Network and Exchange, known as MNSHINE. The transition follows a special joint meeting of MNCM's Board of Directors and members on October 12, at which the Board unanimously approved resolutions authorizing the acquisition, changing the organization's legal name, and establishing a new HIE Advisory Committee. Members unanimously adopted the name change and related amendments to the organization's Articles of Incorporation and Bylaws. An intentional decision to collaborate The transition is the result of an intentional decision by Minnesota health care leaders to collaborate on a health data landscape that makes sense: one that reduces redundancy, increases efficiency, and delivers needed information to those with legal authorization to receive it, where and when it is needed, without unnecessary administrative barriers. "This is not simply a merger of services. It is a deliberate choice to build the kind of health data infrastructure Minnesota deserves," said Liz Cinqueonce, President and CEO of MNCM. "For too long, organizations across our state have had to navigate duplicative systems and disconnected data. By bringing measurement and exchange together, we can reduce that burden and make sure the right information reaches the right people at the right time, with patient privacy protections firmly in place, so they can focus on improving care." The effort builds on months of work by the Executive Leadership Council, convened earlier this year by MNCM, the Minnesota Electronic Health Records Consortium, and Koble to explore how a sustainable, statewide health data utility could serve the public interest. "Minnesota is at its best when we take on difficult challenges together and align on solutions," said Mark Steffen, MD, Chair of the MNCM Board of Directors. "The Board's unanimous support reflects a shared conviction that our future depends on organizations keeping their unique strengths and missions while participating in shared infrastructure and governance. That balance is what enables greater coordination, transparency, efficiency, and impact." A trusted backbone for Minnesota's health data Minnesota's future health data ecosystem is one in which organizations retain their unique strengths and missions while participating in shared infrastructure and governance. The vision for MNSHINE is to become the health data utility, governed in the public interest with strong privacy protections and transparency, that serves as the trusted backbone connecting these efforts, ensuring data can be used more effectively to improve health, wellbeing, and outcomes for all Minnesotans. By bringing the measurement of health care quality, cost, and utilization together with the infrastructure that moves clinical data between organizations, MNSHINE will be positioned to support providers, payers, public health, researchers, policymakers, and communities alike, each within the limits of applicable law and participant agreements. The goal is healthier people, stronger communities, greater equity, better public decisions, smarter investments, and a health system that learns continuously. Continuity for HIE participants HIE services will continue without interruption. To ensure continuity of leadership and relationships, Chad Peterson, CEO of The Koble Group, has joined MNCM as Senior Vice President of HIE Services. “For HIE participants, this transition opens new possibilities,” said Peterson. “When exchange and measurement are guided by one mission, we can reduce duplication for providers and better support care coordination, while holding firm to the privacy protections patients expect. I’m proud to help lead that work, and I’m committed to making sure every participant feels supported as we grow.” MNCM has also established the HIE Advisory Committee as a standing committee of its Board of Directors. The committee continues the work of the Koble-MN Advisory Committee and will advise the Board on interoperability, participant relationships, privacy, security, data governance, and health equity. Jennifer Lamprecht of Sanford Health and Dr. Justine Mrosak of Hennepin Healthcare have been appointed to co-chair the committee, which will include consumer representatives alongside members representing a cross-section of Minnesota's health care community. Protecting patient privacy This transition changes who operates Minnesota's health information exchange. It does not change how patient information is protected or who may access it. MNSHINE will continue to operate in compliance with HIPAA and the Minnesota Health Records Act, which is among the strongest patient-consent laws in the nation, and in compliance with the participant agreements that govern how information is exchanged. Health information exchange and measurement will each remain governed by their own legal and contractual requirements, and bringing them into one organization does not change the purposes for which patient information may be used.
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