“Poverty Does No Favors for Health,” by Alan Mozes, HealthDay

“Being in relatively poor financial health when middle-aged or older appears to significantly increase the risk for developing a disability or dying early. The observation stems from an analysis of data from the United States and England that drew links between wealth and health among almost 20,000 people aged 54 to 76. For example, over a 10-year period, Americans aged 54 to 64 who were in the lowest wealth bracket (with financial holdings of $39,000 or less) faced a 48 percent risk for developing a disability and 17 percent risk for dying prematurely, the investigators found. . . . The fact that people in England are guaranteed cradle-to-grave government-run health care coverage, while Americans are not, did not seem to have much effect.”

LTC Comment (from Stephen A. Moses, President, Center for Long-Term Care Reform):

Could it be that proneness to disability causes poverty rather than the other way around? Or perhaps the same behaviors that often result in poverty, such as sloth and irresponsibility, also lead to disability and poor health.

Poverty Does No Favors for Health

#poverty