HEALTH EQUITY: Scale of impact
Identifying areas where health equity is suffering most, and what it’s costing employers, are the first steps in addressing what employee populations might be up against.
Health disparities by the numbers
Throughout America, health disparities exist across key conditions that prevent oppressed and marginalized populations from receiving the care they need, causing and exacerbating a range of health issues.
Maternal Health
3x
Higher
Black mothers have 3x higher maternal mortality and 2x higher morbidity than white mothers.1
Behavioral Health
55%
Lower
Likely due to under-diagnosis, millennials from majority Black and Hispanic communities have lower diagnosis rates of major depression, 31% and 55% lower respectively when compared to white communities.
2
Diabetes
60%
More
Black adults are 60% more likely than non-Hispanic white adults to be diagnosed with diabetes.3 In 2017, non-Hispanic Black adults were 2.3x more likely to be hospitalized for lower limb amputations as compared to non-Hispanic white adults.4
Cardiovascular Health
70%
More
Black men are 70% more likely to die from a stroke as compared to non-Hispanic white men.
5
Cancer
14%
Higher
People with lower socioeconomic status (SES) which is approximated by a person’s education, economic or work status, have higher cancer death rates than those with higher SES. These gaps are widening and the largest gaps are seen in the most preventable cancers.6 Additionally, a recent CDC study found cancer death rates were 14% higher in rural areas compared with urban areas.7
Covid-19
2.5x
More
Among COVID-19 patients, Black and Hispanic Americans are more than 2.5x more likely to be hospitalized and 2x more likely to die than non-Hispanic white Americans.8 COVID-19 deaths are higher in areas with socioeconomic vulnerabilities like severe housing problems (4.5x higher) and unemployment (2.4x higher).9
Impact on the workplace
There is research that’s beginning to put numbers to what health disparities may be costing employers. The findings show that addressing health equity isn’t just better for employees—but also for businesses.
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In a 2021 survey of U.S. employees, 66% of respondents of color felt that practices and policies at work negatively impact their health and well-being.10 SHRM also found that turnover caused by racial inequity at work may have cost employers up to $172 billion over the five-year period studied, and absenteeism caused by experiencing or witnessing racial bias and discrimination at work may account for up to $54 billion in losses during the past year. 11
Medical Care Costs
$93B
Several studies have begun to quantify the cost of health disparities, estimating it results in about $93 billion in excess medical care costs. Employers bear a significant portion of this burden.12
Lost Productivity
$42B
Studies quantifying the cost of racial health disparities for employers also estimate it results in about $42 billion in lost productivity per year.13
Are health disparities impacting your workforce?
Explore our latest mini-eMagazine to learn about the health equity crisis, its impact on both employees and businesses and actionable steps you can take.
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