Solidarity Economics Series: Public Health in the Monterey Bay Area

Co-authored by Gabriella Alvarez (UCSC) and Chris Benner (UCSC)

May 2024

The Institute for Social Transformation is launching a series on how Solidarity Economics principles of mutuality and movements can be applied to help promote inclusive economic development in the Monterey Bay Region. Each report highlights the ways that our current status quo of inequality undermines our economic prosperity, explaining why this is not inevitable, and how we could build a more robust economy for all.

This report, Solidarity Economics and Public Health, highlights the ways in which our current status quo of health inequality undermines our economic prosperity, explaining why this is not inevitable, and how we could improve public health as well as build a more robust economy for all in our region.

Health is a major component of our economy.

Approximately 11% of total economic output in the United States is associated with health care expenditures (BEA). Despite spending the most on health care expenditures per capita amongst the 37 other OECD countries, the United States still ranks very low on measures of healthcare quality and population health status (OECD). 

Ineffective health care spending results in worse health and economic outcomes, and reinforces inequality disproportionately for racial minority groups (LaViest). The current inequality of our public health system undermines the health, well-being, and economic prosperity of the most impoverished low-income and residents of color.

Solutions to public health should start from a principle of promoting healthy communities and health for all. Achieving this will require reorienting towards promoting health, rather than just treating illness.

Click below to download the report in English or Spanish:

Thank you to the James Irvine Foundation for financial support.

For more information on Solidarity Economics, please see: https://transform.ucsc.edu/work/solidarity-economics-projects