We have to put reduction of health inequalities at the centre of our public health strategy and that will require action on the social determinants of health.
Health inequalities and the social determinants of health are not a footnote to the determinants of health. They are the main issue.
General improvements in health/decline in mortality do not affect all classes equally. As mortality rates fall, social inequalities commonly widen.
Angus Deaton has written a wonderful book, The Great Escape: Health, Wealth, and the Origins of Inequality. . . . Deaton's book is a magisterial overview of health, income, and wealth from the industrial revolution to the present, taking in countries poor and rich. Not just jargon-free but equation-free, the book is written with a beautifully lucid style. . . . [P]owerfully argued and convincing.
If the economists are arguing as to whether we need to cut or stimulate, because they're completely opposite policies, and they can't work it out then I would say let us work it out for you. Let's look at the lives people are able to lead, the effect of policies on the lives people are able to lead, and hence the likely effect on health and health inequalities.
Health and health inequalities tell us a great deal about the good or bad effects of social policies.
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Richard G. Wilkinson Author
