The National Rural Health Association announced that Mina Tanaka, MD, of TAN Healthcare is among those appointed to the Health Equity Council.
The mission of the Health Equity Council within the NRHA is to promote and enhance physical and mental well-being for rural and frontier underserved populations through national leadership, representation, and advocacy for accessible, affordable, high-quality health services that result in an improved quality of life.
The five new council members will serve two-year terms. Dr. Tanaka is one of two members representing Texas on the council. She said, “I am honored to be part of the Council and looking forward to finding innovative ways to address health disparities in rural communities in Southeast Texas and beyond. TAN’s mission has always been to provide the best care and give a voice to those in need, and I hope that my participation in the council can help us continue to make good on that mission.”
Dr. Tanaka sees patients for the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of diseases from routine care to complex illness. Dr. Tanaka earned her medical degree at the University of Illinois College of Medicine at Rockford and completed her Internal Medicine Internship and Residency at Massachusetts General Hospital’s primary care program. She also earned her Master of Public Health at Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health in New York.
The Health Equity Council, which meets on May 6 in Atlanta, Georgia, serves as a forum for the discussion and development of issues related to the needs and concerns of rural underserved populations; monitor all association activities, programs and services to assure appropriate cultural competency and sensitivity to rural underserved populations; develop and support a membership recruitment strategy to increase a diverse membership in the Association; develop and plan the Annual Rural Health Equity Conference and other appropriate education offerings and seek appropriate funding for such activities; and provide an assured vehicle for these needs and concerns to be represented on the Board of Trustees and Rural Health Congress.
