Health Care Spending Not the Most Effective Strategy for Increasing Overall Health of a Population

A recent report on health inequities in BC illsutrates the important role of social determinants on the health of a population. The report suggests that investing in social programs will likely have better outcomes on health than increases in health care spending. According to the Public Health Agency of Canada, "there is mounting evidence that the contribution of medicine and health care is quite limited, and that spending more on health care will not result in significant further improvements in population health. On the other hand, there are strong and growing indications that other factors such as iving and working conditions are crucially important for a healthy population.” Read report here.