Health Equity–Getting beyond Hope

Health is a top priority for Americans, as is often shown in polls commissioned by Research!America and others. In the latter 20th century the Congress invested in that priority, and that investment paid off. Stunning advances made a reality of many Americans’ hopes for longer, better life and a more productive life for ourselves and future generations. From 1950 to 2000, nearly one million early deaths related to coronary disease have been averted, bringing an economic return of $3.6 trillion. To achieve that, the investment in NIH by each American taxpayer has been around $3.70 per year for 30 years. Seat belt laws and public education campaigns about putting babies to sleep on their backs have saved hundreds of thousands of American lives from car accidents and SIDS.

But while this is cause for celebration, we cannot take this pace of progress for granted, and we have much to do to achieve the hope of better health for all Americans.

In Advocacy in Health Care, former Congressman Paul G. Rogers (1921-2008), Research!America’s former chair emeritus, wrote, “We do not hear much in Washington these days about protecting the vulnerable.” It is a sad commentary that his statement is as true today as when he wrote it in 1986.

According to United Health Foundation’s 2009 America’s Health Rankings™ report, the average mortality rate for African-Americans far exceeds that for Caucasians or Hispanics. The CDC found similar disparities in cancer rates. Americans see this as unacceptable: In a 2010 poll commissioned by Research!America, 83% said it is important to conduct research to understand and eliminate these differences and achieve health equity.

Paul Rogers was renowned for saying, “Without research, there is no hope.” Research brings hope for solutions to diseases that currently have none. It tells us which treatments work for which patients. Yet for hope to make an impact, it must inspire action and commitment to a purpose. Health disparities cannot be eliminated without a sustained, significant investment in research.

The hope for health equity is consistent with Americans’ fundamental view that all are created equal. It is long overdue that we make that hope a reality, but without research, there is no hope. We must fund our health research agencies—NIH, CDC, AHRQ, NSF and FDA—at a strong sustained level, to better understand disparities and find new solutions through personalized medicine and prevention. We must fully engage the public as partners in their own health and agenda-setting for research; all health is local, and the public has an invaluable role to play in identifying factors in their communities that contribute to disparities. Lastly, if you are reading this, you likely already have an interest in and knowledge of health disparities. Seek out like-minded organizations or individuals as partners in the fight to end disparities. You may find partners in unexpected places. Educate yourself about ways to tell your elected officials that health equity is important to you and to most Americans. Visit www.researchamerica.org/speaking_out for resources to help.