HEALTH REPORT: POOR MORE LIKELY TO LEAD SHORTER LIFE
Apr 20, 2016
By Bob Komsic
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The poorer you are, the more likely you’re to suffer from multiple chronic conditions and die sooner.
That’s the finding of Health Quality Ontario, the agency that advises the provincial government on the quality of care.
Breaking it down by gender, a just released report from H-Q-O says men living in the poorest neighbourhoods die, on average, more than four years earlier than those well off, while for women, those struggling die about two years earlier.
The report also found the poorest 20% of people are nearly twice as likely as the richest 20% to have at least two chronic conditions.
Roughly six in 10 poor people have insurance for prescription medications, while almost nine in 10 of the wealthiest are covered.
Half of those in the poorest urban neighbourhoods are overdue for colorectal cancer screening, compared with just over one-third in wealthier ones.
Health Quality Ontario president and CEO Joshua Tepper observes the poor ”pay for their lower income with their health.”