Building a Healthier Utah

The last two years have brought a lot of issues to light that have been there for a long time but were easy to ignore until we experienced a once in a lifetime pandemic. That is why we are working with Salt Lake City to develop a health equity plan. Salt Lake City can lead the way on this important issue for our state and encourage other cities to do the same.

You may be wondering what a health equity plan does exactly. A health equity plan ensures that no one is disadvantaged from achieving full health because of socially determined circumstances. It is complex and involves looking at but is not limited to:

• Affordable housing
• Air quality
• Access to healthy food
• Access to medical services

To effectively address these factors an organized and sophisticated approach is necessary. A detailed plan will help prioritize issues and will help assign responsibility and a timeline to progress. Ultimately, a health equity plan done right will create a carefully organized structure to guide focused efforts.

It will not be easy and will require substantial engagement from Utah’s leadership including community members, lawmakers, and local leaders. Bringing stakeholders to the table so they can discuss what their communities need to build a healthier future for all residents is essential so a plan can be formed.

We are working with the Salt Lake City leadership to codify a requirement to establish and implement a health equity plan so that the work will continue even when city leadership changes, which is likely to happen before all the work can be accomplished. This continued progress is crucial for the health of Salt Lake City, and for Utah in general, as equity is a fundamental building block of healthy societies.