Why The Haves Are Healthy And The Have-Nots Suffer

death gab book cover
Cover of 'The Death Gap: How Inequality Kills' University of Chicago Press
death gab book cover
Cover of 'The Death Gap: How Inequality Kills' University of Chicago Press

Why The Haves Are Healthy And The Have-Nots Suffer

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We often hear about how the growing income inequality in America is preventing families from buying a home, or paying for college. But the sharp divide between the haves and the have-nots also has a serious impact on people’s health.

There is a staggering 30-year gap in life expectancy between the rich and the poor in America, and this trend holds true in Chicago where a person’s lifespan is based on race, income, and neighborhood.

Dr. David A. Ansell, professor of Medicine at Rush University and author of the new book The Death Gap: How Inequality Kills, stops by the Morning Shift to share his experience as a physician on the death gap in Chicago. He’ll also talk about what steps we can take to move toward health equality.

Ansell will be at the Oak Park Public Library on Wednesday to talk about life expectancy between the healthiest and wealthiest and the poorest and sickest American neighborhoods.