Abstract
Health equity has started to receive significant attention among Canadian policy-makers, with acknowledgement at both the federal and provincial levels of the importance of reducing health inequities. However, a challenging budget environment has led to a number of budget cutbacks in areas that are likely to negatively influence social determinants of health, such as housing, education, and social assistance. This article analyzes both the federal and Ontario budgets of 2012 and their potential impacts on and implications for health equity. Even though health care services have largely remained untouched in both budgets, the article argues that existing health inequities will be further amplified through the implementation of cutbacks in sectors other than health, given the importance of social determinants of health (SDH) for health equity outcomes.
Key words: Public health, budgets, socio-economic factors
Résumé
L’équité en santé commence à recevoir beaucoup d’attention de la part des responsables des politiques au Canada; tant à l’échelle fédérale que provinciale, on reconnaît l’importance de réduire les iniquités en santé. Cependant, le contexte budgétaire difficile a entraîné des compressions dans des domaines susceptibles d’influencer négativement les déterminants sociaux de la santé, comme le logement, l’éducation et l’aide sociale. Nous analysons le budget fédéral et le budget ontarien de 2012, leur impact possible sur l’équité en santé et les répercussions de cet impact. Même si les services de santé ont en grande mesure été épargnés par les compressions budgétaires, nous faisons valoir que les iniquités existantes en santé seront amplifiées par l’application des compressions dans d’autres secteurs, étant donné l’importance des déterminants sociaux de la santé (DSS) pour l’équité en santé.
Mots clés: santé publique, budget, facteurs socioéconomiques
Footnotes
Acknowledgement: The research leading to this commentary was made possible through financial support provided by the Population Health Improvement Research Network’s (PHIRN) Emerging Researcher Award funded by the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care (MOHLTC).
Conflict of interest: None to declare.
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