Author Meets Critics: "Ripples of Hope: Charting the Health Equity Policy Agenda"

Session Submission Type: Author meet critics

Session Description

This author meets critics panel addresses one of the most important topics in public policy: the sources of inequalities, specifically the health inequalities that blight the United States. Life expectancy in the United States is dropping, a troubling reversal of historic trends, and the reason is bound up with histories of inequality and American politics.

The panel addresses the contribution of a new book by David K. Jones, completed after his untimely death by friends and colleagues, that looks at American health inequalities where they are perhaps most visible: in the Mississippi Delta.
The panel will involve a presentation of the new book, published by the University of North Carolina Press, by the co-editors who brought it to publication, followed by a discussion from different perspectives of American politics, history, and health politics.

Book:
David K. Jones, Ripples of Hope: Charting the Health Equity Policy Agenda
(To be presented by a representative of co-editors Debra Bingham, Nicole Huberfeld, and Sarah Gordon)
Eating well is challenging when few grocery stores are nearby, fresh foods are not affordable, and time to prepare wholesome foods is limited. An active lifestyle is nearly impossible when parks are not nearby, sidewalks do not connect, and safety is an overriding issue. Generational wealth cannot be built when well-paying jobs are scarce, banks do not give mortgage loans, and available housing is low-quality and unsafe. A great education is a path to a better life but hard to obtain if too few teachers, inadequate resources, and improper and disproportionate discipline are the norm. Access to necessary medical care is limited when primary care providers are scarce, each visit to a specialist requires three hours of driving, and high deductibles and other out of pocket costs consume a large share of annual income.
The extremes of the Mississippi Delta illustrate the complex relationships between class, race, and health that make achieving health equity across the entire U.S. so difficult. Using qualitative methods, including on-the-ground interviews with local residents, advocates, and officials, as well as inter-disciplinary research, this book explores health in the Mississippi Delta to better understand health policy goals for the entire nation. Each of the five major chapters starts with a reflection from Robert F. Kennedy’s trip to the Delta in 1967. The chapters discuss the major barriers to health in five key domains: food, neighborhoods, jobs, education, and health care. Each chapter includes “Ripples of Hope,” highlighting how local groups and individuals are working to overcome barriers to health, as well as highlights root causes that must be addressed. The chapters end with principles and goals that should guide national and state policy action, which are deliberately broad so as to be applicable in a variety of settings.

Sub Unit

• Division 48: Health Politics & Health Policy

Chair

• Scott L. Greer University of Michigan

Presenters

• Debra Bingham Institute for Perinatal Quality Improvement

• Sarah E. Gollust University of Minnesota

• Jamila D. Michener Cornell University

• Robert Mickey University of Michigan

• Philip B. Rocco Marquette University

• Nicole Huberfeld Boston University