Health disparities—differences in health status between groups of people that are often preventable and unfair—affect every nation, from the least to the most developed. Even in a country like Sweden, with the highest male life expectancy in Europe and a social welfare system that many countries envy, there is a gap in life expectancy between people with low and high levels of education. 1,2
“Any complex society has socioeconomic inequalities,” says Michael Marmot, a professor of epidemiology and public health at University College London and chair of the World Health Organization’s Commission on the Social Determinants of Health.
Efforts to reduce health disparities are framed differently from country to country—some policy makers prefer to use the lens of health equity instead of that of disparities—and the specific populations of greatest concern also vary. But the ultimate goal is the same. Indeed, countries are increasingly interested in learning from each other as they work toward reducing or eliminating health disparities. (author abstract)
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