Health Equity

Social and economic circumstances like income, level of education, cultural background, race and gender can affect health.  These social determinants of health are often influenced by circumstances outside of our control and affect our experience within communities, organizations, and institutions. 

Health equity means that all individuals have the chance to reach their full health potential and are not disadvantaged or treated differently because of their social and economic circumstances. 

Health equity and health equality are not the same thing.  Health equality means that everyone is treated the same and provided with the same opportunity to be healthy. In contrast, health equity is about removing barriers and/or providing supports based on individual needs, so that everyone has an equal chance to be healthy.  This means that some people may need more resources and support than others, to be healthy, and these resources and support are available and accessible when they need them.