Causal Linkages
Access to health care is influenced by social, economic, political, as well as geographical differences. The geographic location plays a significant role in the health divide and health outcomes. Inequalities in geographical location (rural vs. urban, inner-city vs. surburbia; demographic make-up) have a direct link to access to delivery and quality of health services. This point is critical in terms of health care delivery. For instance, if persons live in a minority-specific neighborhood, health care providers are reluctant to provide services. Examinations of linkages between race, environmental concern, health, and justice in communities of color have found race and socio-economic status as important determinants of the location of environmental pollution, degradation, and associated health risks. People of color and the poor are more likely than whites and other more affluent groups to live in areas with poor environmental quality and protection.
Geographical studies utilizing area-based socioeconomic measures (ABSMs) and geo-coding residential addresses are able to map health disparities. This suggests that place has influence over medical practice and intervention strategies should extend beyond the individual to location. This requires an expansion in monitoring capabilities to reduce disparities. Capturing the composition, context, and location of medically undeserving populations and communities is a tactical approach that lends support to policy interventions expanding beyond the individual to determine the allocation of federal funds and incentive programs designed to improve access to quality care. Health inequality and its inequitable service delivery carry an exorbitant price tag. The payoff of restructuring the US data infrastructure to improve measurements of race/ethnicity and class/socioeconomic status can be beneficial when considering long-term health care spending and financing. The section that follows discusses this topic in more detail.
