Equitable Access to Healthcare

What is Health Equity?

Inequitable access to healthcare is present in every country around the world, including high-income countries such as the United States. Health equity refers to healthcare that is accessible to all members of the population, irrespective of their economic status, education, ethnicity, race, geographic location, gender, or sexual orientation. Health equity does not include factors that cannot be controlled, such as genetic disorders that are more prevalent within a certain racial or ethnic group. However, when a particular group is disadvantaged in accessing services or when the quality of healthcare differs across groups, these factors have the potential to negatively impact the health status of that group. It is not uncommon to see that minority ethnic groups, persons living in rural areas, or impoverished persons have lower life expectancies than the rest of a particular population. Much of the time, these trends are directly related to inequitable access to healthcare. Fortunately, disparities can be identified and challenged.

Financial Disparities

Socioeconomic status is one of the strongest predictors of health and longevity. The better off a person or group is, the more likely they are to be healthy and have high life expectancies. There are two reasons for this. Firstly, having the economic means to access healthcare services immediately makes an individual more likely to recover from potential health problems. Secondly, income is directly related to education. Those with high incomes are more likely to understand the value of getting proper treatment in a timely manner. And even when healthcare is subsidized or offered at no cost to low-income and poor people, there is no guarantee that their health statuses will improve. It is not uncommon that public-sector healthcare is overcrowded, understaffed, and generally poorer quality compared to healthcare in the private sector. As a result, groups that cannot afford private sector care are at a disadvantage.

Geographic Disparities

For people living in rural locations around the world, physical limitations can result in inequitable access to healthcare. This is especially prevalent in large countries, such as Russia and China, where infrastructure, resources, and health professionals are more or less nonexistent in non-urban areas. If the individual is not able or not willing to travel the distance required to access medical care, this can contribute to poor health status. Of course, poverty can also be a contributing factor as individuals residing in rural areas are more likely to experience poverty. Many countries around the world, such as India, are currently targeting healthcare in towns, villages, and rural areas.

Racial/Ethnic Disparities

Differences in access to and quality of healthcare across racial groups is a common issue in both developing countries, such as Uganda, Ghana, and South Africa and developed countries such as New Zealand, Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom, Italy, and France. For instance, in the United States, ethnic minorities are also less likely to receive the same quality of care as other populations. The Journal of the American Medical Association (AMA) indicates that minority groups such as Hispanics are in general less likely to see specialists, undergo technical procedures, and receive preventative care. They often have less health insurance coverage than white Americans and are therefore less likely to access medical services on a regular basis. As a result, Hispanics in the United States have a poorer overall health status when compared to Caucasians. The same is true of African Americans.

Gender Disparities

Finally, gender may also contribute to inequitable access. This might be the result of healthcare insurance policies that charge more or less according to one’s gender, which was recently prohibited in the United States. In some regions, women are more likely to purchase insurance coverage than men. Additionally, many developing countries raise individuals of each gender according to their prescribed roles in society. For instance, in India, young girls are typically fed poorer diets than their male counterparts, where it is assumed that males will become breadwinners and therefore require better nourishment. The result is that females may be more likely to suffer from poorer health. In general, though, females around the world have higher life expectancies than men. Mostly, this is because men are more likely to die from violence and accidents.

Reasons for Inequity

There are many reasons for inequity when it comes to access to healthcare, most of which depend on policies and realities of service delivery in the country. One of the biggest contributors to inequality is lack of insurance coverage, which stops people from seeking care out of fear that they won’t be able to afford the bill. Another reason why people might choose not to seek care is if they don’t have a family physician that they can go to regularly with their health issues. In countries with high immigrant populations, such as Canada, not being able to communicate with a healthcare professional is also a barrier. Every country faces a unique set of problems with respect to inequity.