U.S. health care spending grew by 5.3 percent in 2014, to a record $3 trillion, the last week.
While more and better health care is necessary, it is probably not sufficient to advance better overall population health and to address lingering health disparities, says an expert on public health at Washington University in St. Louis.
鈥淲e need a better understanding on the part of the public and policy makers about the contexts in which health and illness develop, and a movement beyond individual effort as the solution,鈥� said Jason Purnell, PhD, assistant professor at the Brown School.
Purnell has written the chapter, 鈥淔inancial Health as Public Health,鈥� in the newly released book, The book was published Dec. 8 by the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco and the Corporation for Enterprise Development.
鈥淎merican families are stressed and stretched, and their household financial status has to be part of any set of solutions to health,鈥� he said. 鈥淭argeted investments are also needed in early education, supports within schools, mental health, and community and economic development 鈥� all with the aim of a healthier, more productive population.鈥�
Purnell鈥檚 chapter addresses the social determinants of health that have a considerable impact on the health of populations.
鈥淎merica has a relatively poor showing when you compare our health outcomes with those of other wealthy nations,鈥� he said. 鈥淭here are limitations of even the Affordable Care Act to deal with that.鈥�
Writes Purnell: 鈥淲e know that poverty, violence, and inadequate resources, services, and amenities affect the health of communities as well. We must find creative ways of making health promotion a central part of community and economic development.
鈥淚n these and many other ways, the inextricable, often stress-laden link between financial well-being and physical and mental health must become the centerpiece of public understanding and public policy. Both our economic health as a nation and the very lives of the American people depend on it.鈥�