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Economic Disparities In Health Care

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Sociologist David Williams states that all policies impact health policy. This is exemplified across a wide rage of policies in the US. These policies are flawed and corrupt, polarizing the nation racially and by socioeconomic status (SES) and resulting in great disparities in health. Although policy and law has evolved, presenting a more progressive and “color-blind” front, it remains an obstacle to ending disparities in health. Many of these policies, such as housing, environmental, and labor, are interconnected and have many aspects to them that affect health policy. In order to address racial and socioeconomic disparities in health policy, we must address the policies that contribute to this disparity. Housing policy greatly impacts health …show more content…

A prime example is Camden, NJ, which is home to 103 toxic locations as well a many poor minorities, a situation you would never see in an affluent white neighborhood. The remaining citizens do not have enough money to relocate, and in comparison to the corporate money from the toxic sites, they have no hope in buying back the politicians who allowed so many toxic corporations to operate there. Their lack of agency subjects these individuals to a variety of carcinogens among other toxins, forcing them to stay and watch as so many of their children develop asthma. Another example of how environmental policy impacts health is the situation in Flint, MI, where a careless switch to river water as the main water supply without proper environmental investigation resulted in the lead poisoning of countless residents, including children. Furthermore, the government tried to tell citizens that the water was fine and hide and discredit proof that said otherwise. This is another situation where the community was mainly people of color or people of low SES, but environmental precautions were not being carried out. Another environment with policies that affect health is the work …show more content…

These policies work together, keeping people of like ethnic backgrounds and SES residentially segregated in areas that suffer from a lack of resources and enforcement of environmental policies like in Camden, NJ or Flint, MI. Living in these areas reinforces the cycle of SES, limiting their socioeconomic mobility by providing poor public education, leading to a limited job market. Their lack of finances prevents them from seeking better homes, keeping them in the area. This area, due to its lack of resources, doesn’t have as many healthy food options and safe locations such as parks to exercise, reinforcing unhealthy behaviors. Furthermore, their lack of finances prevents them from buying healthy foods even if they were available as well as discourages them from seeking medical help when it is needed because it is so expensive. Also due to their limited job qualifications, they may find themselves working for places like McWane Corp, where their health and safety is sacrificed for corporate profit and they cannot leave for fear of permanent unemployment. These policies intertwine, creating a sticky web that traps individuals in low SES, a status that is riddled with stress and other health

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Introduction The article Cancer Alley: Big Industry, Big Problem written by Trymaine Lee discusses the connection between health risk and the environment in the south, particularly in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The article explains the connection between poverty, and the location of industrial plants that expose people to toxic pollutants. Studies conducted on the United States show that poor people, mostly poor African Americans, are more likely to live in neighborhood that is close to industrial plants, which causes them to be more at risk for health issues due to the environment. In general, the article explains that in the United States, particularly in the south, there is something called environmental racism. Environmental racism can be described as certain people in certain areas are exposed to contaminated air, soil and water.

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Living in underprivileged neighborhoods creates a lot of stress on community members that predispose them to contracting diseases. Epidemiologist, Ana Diez-Roux, states that people living in disadvantaged neighborhoods have a 50% to 80% increased risk of developing heart disease. An improvement of health policies is required to for disadvantaged neighborhoods to

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The lecture, led by Dr. Christian Dimaano, discussed a variety of health disparities and then went into an in depth look at Henrietta Lacks, and the use of her cells in scientific research. He described health disparities as the differences of health problems between races, lifestyles, and mental processes. This was a very interesting topic for me, as a nursing major, I hadn’t really thought about health disparities before, so it was interesting to think about all of the potentially higher health risks that can occur simply because a patients race, or mental state. He also discussed the social determinants of heath and how things like your physical environment, economic stability, social community, and education can all influence your health. Dr. Dimaano also talked about how social determinants of health are health problems that you had no choice in, they are developed by factors such as sex, age, genes, medical care, and individual behaviors such as work and home life.

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For instance, people with higher incomes have more opportunities to live in safe and healthy homes, better communities, and near high-quality schools. They are also generally better able to purchase healthy foods and afford time for physical activity. For example, Harlem community does not have many markets with fresh vegetables and fruit, providing inhabitants with convenience stores selling fast food. In order to buy a fresh food, Harlem residents have to travel long distances or pay high prices for wilting fruits and vegetables. When taking COMHE 306 my final assignment was to write annotated bibliography based on 15 articles, this assignment helped me to understand deeply health issues in Harlem due to the fact that my paper was based on health disparities of Hispanics in health.

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Healthcare disparities are a significant issue in the U.S. with factors such as quality of care, access to care, and insurance playing a role in discrepancies. Statistics have shown that healthcare disparities have improved but are still an issue in the United States. These disparities have been improving throughout history with efforts made by Presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama. The leading cause of the disparities is insurance coverage. The current intervention being used is the ACA, which was put into place by President Obama.

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Discussion The combined effects of inequality and structural racism indicators at risk of SGA birth income were examined and found that the structural racism, assessed against racial inequalities in education, employment, and prison was strongly associated with the birth of SGA when It occurred in combination with high income inequality. Relations were not explained by state differences in poverty or absolute individual differences in demographic characteristics or factors of biological or behavioral risk. When co-occur at high levels, the combined effects of income inequality and structural racism increased risk of SGA birth almost 2 times. This effect was not influenced by race, implying that the deleterious context of high inequality of

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Summary of Findings This project discusses key health disparities that exist between Blacks and Whites in the United States Health Care System. This analysis also discusses the historical origins of the health disparities that exist between Blacks and Whites in the U.S. Health care system. This analysis describes the complex social, political and health factors of health disparities between Black and Whites. This describes the steps individuals can take to combat racism and decrease health disparities among African Americans and whites.

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Some areas in the United States face higher rates of crime and drug abuse. This contributes to the prevalence of health disparities within different communities. In order to eliminate or decrease the distinct difference between areas that are at higher health risks than others one must begin to understand why they exist. Some areas have higher drug abuse rates than others due to factors such as poor education, poverty, unemployment rates, and lack of community involvement. These things play a major role in whether or not a young adult is going to start the use of drugs or drinking alcohol.

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The uninsured health coverage rate has declined as a whole for the country since Presidents Bush’s presidency from 16% to 11.9%, significantly impacting health care equality as a whole in American (NBC, 2015). President Obama has also worked to reduce racial and ethnic health disparities through The Affordable Care Act. This health reform advocated increased racial and ethnic diversity of professionals in health care through the HSS Action Plan to Reduce Health Disparities and the National Stakeholder Strategy for Achieving Health Equality (White House, 2015). United States being the number one superpower in the world was not able to provide its

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In recent times, the subject of health disparities has attracted a lot of attention through the media report in both local and national level.in this essay, the health condition of African American will be discussed in this in the following areas as their health status, barriers to health, diverse population and disparities, and health promotion approach to improving this situation. Health Status: According to the 2014 National Health Interview Survey, 13.5% of all African Americans have less than average health (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2014a). Averagely, the African-American have higher prevalence of cancer, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and hypertension compared to the national ratio. Further study reveals that 48

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570 Words | 3 Pages

Health Care in the US is arguably available to all who seek it but not everybody has had the same experience and treatment when walking through the doors of a healthcare facility. In many cases, people are discriminated against due to their gender, race/ethnicity, age, and income and are often provided with minimal service. Differences between groups in health coverage, access to care, and quality of care is majorly affected through these disparities. Income is a major factor and can cause groups of people to experience higher burden of illness, injury, disability, or mortality relative to another group.

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Many Americans were led to believe that the introduction of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act in 2009 would put an end to disparities in health care access. While it did improve the situation for a small percentage of the population there are still many Americans who lack access to good quality health care. Health care access in America is determined by money and those in lower socioeconomic groups frequently tend to miss out on adequate care. In a recent health care report by the national health research foundation Kaiser Family Foundation, it was noted “health care disparities remain a persistent problem in the United States, leading to certain groups being at higher risk of being uninsured, having limited access to care, and experiencing poorer quality of care” (Kaiser Family Foundation). The current health care

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Kaiser Family Foundation (2012), health and health care despairs refer to differences in the health and health care between population groups. The health disparity generally refers to a higher burden of illness, injury, disability, or mortality experienced by one population group relative to another. A health care disparity typically refers to the differences between groups in health coverage, access to care, and quality of care. While disparities are commonly viewed through the lens of race and ethnicity, they occur across many dimensions, including socioeconomic status, age, location, gender, disability status, and sexual orientation (HKFF,

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675 Words | 3 Pages

To be able to make sure that everyone has equality presidents & governors pass bills to make sure that pollution from chemical waste sites are not only in minority neighborhoods. In conclusion, pollution from chemical waste sites has an impact on many people’s lives. Some have had asthma attacks, caused babies to die because of the breast milk that they were taking in. Most pollution & asthma attacks come from people in minority neighborhoods. Environmental racism can lead to people having asthma attacks because of air pollution from factories, can harm food & water minority people eat & drink, and also can make governors and presidents fight for minority people in minority

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1100 Words | 5 Pages

Nearly one half of the world 's population is affected by environmental poverty, however, only fourteen percent in the United States fall in line with poverty (Mark). The poor, Hispanics, and blacks suffer the most from pollution, health, and hazardous waste issues, unlike people from other races and social classes. Taking for granted good food, clean water, and other resources necessary to survive, wealthy citizens forget that others struggle. Some areas in America are deficient in these basic resources that are necessary to live. Driving through different communities, it is clear that certain areas lack proper health needs.

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