Health Equity

How More State Health Care Spending Can Lead to Worse Health

Abstract: Squeezed by rising health care costs, states have shifted money away from “social spending” on programs like public education, public health services, housing assistance, food assistance and income support. That shift “is having dire and long-lasting consequences for the nation’s health and community well-being,” warns a new report from the Lown Institute, a nonpartisan nonprofit that advocates for affordable health care.

Date Published: July 24, 2019

Publication: The Fiscal Times

View This Resource

This analysis of California’s state budget from 2007 to 2018 finds that to ensure the long-term health of the state, California needs to eliminate health care waste and direct the savings toward increased funding for programs that improve community conditions—like public education, public health, housing assistance, food assistance, and income support.