Racial/Ethnic Disparities in the United States Health Care Socioeconomic Disparities and health are growing at a rapid rate throughout the United States of America. To further understand the meaning of Socioeconomic Disparities, Health and Socioeconomic disparities & health, this essay will assist in providing evidence. Disparities can be defined in many ways, of which include ethnic and racial background and class types that deal with it the most. Due to the low income some individuals receive, they have less access to health care and are at risk for major health issues. Although, ethnicity and socioeconomic status should not determine the level of health care one should receive or whether not the individual receives healthcare. Socioeconomic …show more content…
Nordqvist, Christian stated some facts about health, “ health can be defined as a physical, mental, and social well being, and a resource for living a full life. It refers not only to the absence of disease, but the ability to recover and bounce back from illness. Factors for good health include genetics, the environment, relationship, and education.”(page2). Health can be defined in many factors, but they all relate to a person's status and where their class in the economy. If one is wealthy, he or she can have access to healthcare that provides treatment to any of their health issues. But for the people who have low income, they can not afford health insurance and have a higher risk of becoming ill because they don’t have the resources to live a full healthy life. Most of those individuals have mental health issues because they often stress about living and surviving everyday with so little income. Christian Nordiqvist also said, “According to the WHO, the higher a person's socioeconomic status (SES), the more likely they are to enjoy good health, a good education, a well-paid job, afford good healthcare when their health is threatened” (pg.2). Christian is correct because the wealthier a person is, the higher chance of being in good health because he or she has the privilege of good health …show more content…
Therefore they are very likely to be at risk for poor health. They are also less likely to have access to health care and to live longer. In the article racial/Ethnic and socioeconomic disparities it states, “Racial/ethnic and socioeconomic disparities in inadequate hydration among US adults are related to differences in tap water and other beverage intake. Policy action is needed to ensure equitable access to healthy beverage”(pg.1). There is even a difference in tap water that is consumed by the people and that difference is defined by Race/ethnic and income. This is very upsetting because every human is created equal and it's one of the human's right to consume safe water. Furthermore, socioeconomic status has a huge influence on a person's
The public needs to address racial disparities in health which is achievable by changing policy addressing the major components of socioeconomic status (income, education, and occupation) as well as the pathways by which these affect health. To modify these risk factors, one needs to look even further to consider the factors. Socioeconomic status is a key underlying factor. Several components need to be identified to offer more options for those working on policy making. Because the issue is so big, I believe that not a single policy can eliminate health disparities in the United States. One possible pathway can be education, like the campaign to decrease tobacco usage, which is still a big problem, but the health issue has decreased in severity. The other pathway can be by addressing the income, by giving low-income individuals the same quality of care as an individual who has a high
People in lower classes are more likely to get sicker more often and to die quicker. People in metro Louisville reveal 5- and 10-year gaps in life expectancy between the city’s rich, middle- and working-class neighborhoods. Those who live in the working class neighborhood face more stressors like unpaid bills, jobs that pay little to nothing, unsafe living conditions, and the fewest resources available to help them, all of these contribute to the health issues.
Germov (2015: 87-93) states that the most common explanations of health inequality can be grouped into five main categories. These five categories are artifact explanations, natural/social selection explanation, cultural/behavioral explanation, materialist/structural explanations, and psycho-social/social capital explanation of the social gradient of health. Basically, health inequality has to do with what your status is as an individual, cultural, economic, as well as education level. In the textbook, Germov (2015: 516) defines the term social gradient of health “as a continuum of health inequality in most countries from high to low.” Meaning the poorest group has the worst health status, while each group above the poorest has a better health status. An example of this injustice would be the indigenous
Healthy People 2020 defines health disparities as a particular type of health difference that is closely linked with social, economic, and/or environmental disadvantage (“Healthy People 2020,” n.d.). Health Disparities that are associated with diabetes include many different minority populations. These populations that are affected more severely by diabetes and do not receive diabetes research, treatment or education. Racial and ethnic minority populations have a higher risk of diabetic complications such as lower limb amputations and kidney failure.
When we consider the education of our children in the United States, we must consider their health as a significant issue as it can positively or negatively impact a student’s education. It has generally been acknowledged that there is a great disparity in our country in the area of health care. Healthy People2010, a published report put out by the Health and Human Services Division of the Unites States Government (2000) has included as part of its Goals for 2010, to eliminate health disparities among different segments of the population. According to this report, health differences occur depending on a persons gender, race or ethnicity, education or income, disability, rural locality, or sexual orientation. In this paper, I will mostly concentrate on racial and ethnic differences as well as socioeconomic differences. According to the Healthy People 2010 report, biological and genetic differences do not explain the health disparities experienced by non-White populations in the United States. Besides "complex interaction among genetic variations, environmental factors, and specific health behaviors," Health and Human Services says, "inequalities in income and education underlie many health disparities in the United States." Also, "population groups that suffer the worst health status are also those that have the highest poverty rates and least education." Health, United States (1998) reported that each increase of income or education increased the likelihood of being in good health. According to this report, those with less education tend to die younger than those with more education for all major causes of death including chronic diseases, communicable diseases and injuries. There are several factors that account for differences between socioeconomic and racial and ethnic groups. These factors include a lower sedentary life style, cigarette smoking and less likely to have health insurance coverage or receive preventive care among these groups.
Throughout this class we have talked about how various disparities can influence both how and when you need health care, be it for physical or mental reasons. Basically if you aren’t a middle class and above white male with a good job you’re basically fucked. Things such as race, gender, education, the environment you grew up in, who you know, and of course your insurance and income play a huge role in how you experience all aspects of healthcare. As explained in the Link&Phelan article, certain social factors can cuase specific health results. As explained in the article the Fundamental Causes Theory “claims that new mechanisms arise because persons of higher socioeconomic status are able to deploy wide range of resources- including knowledge, money power, prestige, and beneficial social connections- that can be used individually and collectively in different places and at different times to avoid disease and death.” What this means is basically those who are better off are more suited and have more chances to combat sickness and to elongate their lives.
Health disparity is one of the major concerns in the provision of quality care and access to healthcare which directly the life expectancy of the nation as about ethnicity and race. However, describing the health outcomes or status of an ethnic group in the population would help in a better evaluation of the disparities that occur within minority groups in our society. “Racial/ethnic disparities in health and quality of and access to health care are a well-documented and persistent problem. Across many indicators of health, access to care, and health care quality, racial/ethnic minorities fare worse than whites, and each population faces specific challenges”(James et al., 2017, p. 1).
Culture plays a key role in the quality of healthcare or health insurance services offered to patients. Disparities are ethnic or racial differences in the quality of healthcare. Ethnic or racial minorities tend to receive poor quality healthcare services compared to the majority ethnic group.
Opportunities for good health bypass many of us daily. If we all were rich we all would have good healthcare because we could afford it. Being healthy and living a healthy lifestyle can be costly. For most people good health may be unobtainable due to ones economic circumstances. In most situations being healthy has nothing to do with color or zip code. However it has everything to do with money or the lack thereof.
Socio-economic class or socio-economic status (SES) may refer to mixture of various factors such as poverty, occupation and environment. It is a way of measuring the standard and quality of life of individuals and families in society using social and economic factors that affect health and wellbeing ( Giddens and Sutton, 2013). Cockerham (2007 p75) argues: ‘Social class or socioeconomic status (SES) is the strongest predictor of health, disease causation and longevity in medical sociology.’ Research in the 1990s, (Drever and Whitehead, 1997) found out that people in higher SES are generally healthier, and live longer than those in lower SES.
Williams, D. R., & Jackson, P. B. (2005). Social sources of racial disparities in health. Health Affairs, 24(2), 325-334. doi:10.1377/hlthaff.24.2.325
Most of these articles also argued that healthy policies by themselves cannot achieve the expected health improvement.1-3,7-13 This is why the US healthcare access cannot be improved without paying attention to the social and environmental needs of the poor Americans, who in most cases are at the receiving end. The social determinants of health can only be improved through actions targeted at the factors that improve life.1-3,4-5 Government policies should be translated into actions that are centered on enhancing the conditions in which people live, work, play, and grow.1,3,12 The situation that people are born into should not control their destiny, access to healthcare or other opportunities in life, because it will be then unfair and unjust. 1-3,7-13
Social determinants of health has been a large topic for many years and can have a positive and negative effect on individuals, families and communities. (World Health Organisation, 2009) The social determinants of health are the conditions in which people are born, grow, live, work and age, including the health system. These circumstances are shaped by the distribution of money, power and resources at global, national and local levels, which are themselves influenced by policy choices. Social determinants have many factors and in this essay education will be the main social determinant of health discussed and how this could have an impact on the physical and mental sides of health.
In “Unnatural Causes” the reason social class inequality produces health consequences is because the lower class doesn’t get the nutrition that they need compared to the higher class. As the social classes go down on the pyramid the people’s health get worse. For example, the rates of heart disease, chronic disease, diabetes, and stroke get more survivor. Health is more than health care, individual behaviors, or genes because there are different factors that cause bad or good health. It’s based on wealth or poverty, social environment, and green space or toxins in their area. For example, the crime rate in their community, how much education, their house size, race, and what jobs they have, and the kinds foods they are able to afford. These
One of the main causes for the increase in life expectancy was the reduction of infant, childhood and elderly mortality. Another significant circumstance is that the NHS provides free medical care, regardless the patient’s financial condition. Logically, that would mean life expectancy would be similar between individuals of different social classes. However, several studies have linked socio-economical inequalities to patterns of disease in the UK. In this essay, the relationship between patterns of health inequality and social class will be assessed, as well its implications for health practitioners.