Running head: U.S.

HEALTH CARE POLICY 1

U.S. Health Care Policy

Students Name

University/College
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Health policies, heath determinants, and health are inherently interrelated and affect the

health outcomes of a population. Mostly, establishing the relationship will explain the role of

public health when refining the community health. The three concepts are part of the social

determinants of health. A general understanding of the three perspectives will help in prioritizing

research on public health and enhance the performance of the process (Carey, Crammond,

Malbon, & Carey, 2015).

Public health, directly and indirectly, affects the population based on social determinants.

Public health has made many contributions to the society. It includes vaccination efforts, the

safety of vehicles, controlling infectious diseases, healthier children and mothers and recognition

of various health hazards such as poor diet, and smoking. Based on these advancements, the

main contribution airing from public health is an increase in the life span. More people have the

opportunity to live longer as they have access to essential healthcare. This has led to a decrease

in injuries and accidents, and prevented childhood mortality (Carey, Crammond, Malbon, &

Carey, 2015). It has also proven effective in dealing with infectious diseases, especially among

at-risk populations.

Determinants of health

Various variables combine that would affect the health of communities and individuals.

Even though the annual expenditure on healthcare has been on the increase, the healthcare

system, especially in the US, is falling behind other systems worldwide. The current policy is the

Medicaid health plan. Additionally, the country spends more finances on healthcare in

comparison to social care. Even though general population healthcare is essential to the health of

individuals, research has shown that it is a minimal determinant of health (Carey, Crammond,

Malbon, & Carey, 2015). Health behaviors, such as exercise, diet, and smoking. Furthermore,
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there is increasing recognition that there are a variety of environmental, economic, and social

factors that influence the barriers and opportunities to take part in healthy behaviors.

Social determinants significantly affect the health of an individual. These social

determinants arise from the health policies and are influenced by the health policies. Essentially,

the social determinants are structural conditions and determinants where people age, grow live,

born and work. They comprise several variables such as social support, education,

socioeconomic status, and access to healthcare. Research carried out has shown social factors

such as social supports, racial segregation, and education that accounts for over a third of the

total deaths in the US. It is common in man societies that the likelihood of premature death

increases as the incomes reduce (Carey, Crammond, Malbon, & Carey, 2015). Additionally,

other issues such as lower education are related to lower wages, shorter life expectancy rates and

a higher chance of smoking. Moreover, children who are born to parents who are not well

educated are exposed to more issues in the society.

The social policies are often used as means to address social determinants of health. It

means that healthcare is linked to the social needs of the individual, and it leads to improved

outcomes. This is achieved through a community needs analysis and geospatial analysis. It is

used in applying place-based approaches to deal with environmental and social determinants of

health. In this case, the social policies focus on neighborhoods facing environmental, economic,

and social barriers such as those populated with minorities (Carey, Crammond, Malbon, &

Carey, 2015). It leads to improvement the health of the larger population.

In conclusion, health policies, heath determinants, and health are inherently interrelated

and affect the health outcomes of a population. The health of individuals is not linked to health

policies but rely on health determinants. These include variables within the social and
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environment of the individual will affect their health. It includes their education, socioeconomic

position and even unhealthy behaviors such as policies. Health policies are used to address social

determinants of health. In the long run, they are part of an essential strategy to improve health

outcomes and prevent certain health issues in the society.

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References

Carey, G., Crammond, B., Malbon, E., & Carey, N. (2015). Adaptive policies for reducing

inequalities in the social determinants of health. International Journal of Health Policy

and Management, 4(11), 763-767.