Much of the national health policy focus around social disparities in health in the U.S. has been on initiatives seeking to improve access to and the coverage of medical care, as well as, addressing the quality and intensity of healthcare. Researchers studying social inequalities in health tend to emphasize, in contrast, that medical care is a relatively small contributor to the overall health status of the population and to social inequities in health. These researchers note that inadequacies in medical care account for only about 10% of the variation in health status,158 medical care has contributed relatively little to improvements in health in the last 250 years,159 and most health problems occur long before individuals get to their healthcare provider or hospital. In contrast, we argue that the contribution of medical care to racial and SES disparities in health deserves renewed examination and research.
