Ethnic Differences in Blood Pressure Control Among Men at Veterans Affairs Clinics and Other Health Care Sites

Differentialaccesstohealthcaremaycon-tributetolowerbloodpressure(BP)controlratestoun-der 140/90 mm Hg in African American compared withwhite hypertensive patients, especially men (26.5% vs36.5%ofallhypertensivepatientsintheNationalHealthandNutritionExaminationSurvey1999-2000).TheDe-partment of Veterans Affairs (VA) system, which pro-vides access to health care and medications across eth-nicandeconomicboundaries,mayreducedisparitiesinBP control.