Social Justice Is Not the COVID-19 Vaccine Alone: It Is Addressing Structural Racism Through Social Policies That Shape Health

The union advantage: union membership, access to care, and the Affordable Care Act

“…That union workers are more likely to receive paid-leave fringe benefits is an important feature of differential access. The Covid-19 pandemic made evident the public health relevance of paid leave and paid physician visit policies, as the inability to take time off work—either when sick with Covid-19 or to get vaccinated—became a stumbling block for pandemic containment efforts in some communities (Mays et al, 2021 ; McMorrow & Thomas, 2021 ). To the extent that union membership continues to decline, this suggests that the loss of fringe benefits driven by a declining population of union workers may be a source of negative public health externalities.…”

Trends and structural factors affecting health equity in the United States at the local level, 1990–2019

“…First, scientists should continue to advance research in health equity as a distinct concept from health disparities. While there have been encouraging advances in this area ( Hoyer et al, 2022 ; Liburd et al, 2020 ; Mandelbaum, 2020 ; Mays et al, 2021 ; van Raalte et al, 2018 ), there remains significant progress to be made. For instance, key funding mechanisms that play a critical role in supporting current and future trends in research have sometimes lagged behind these developments in the literature.…”

Structural Racism and Well-Being Among Young People in the U.S.

“…Instead, eliminating structural racism requires a long and coordinated movement that recognizes the importance of this issue across various levels of health and social policy. 1 , 52 , 53 …”