The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA

Abstract #42000

Meredith P. Fort, International Health Program, University of Washington, School of Public Health, PO Box 357660, Seattle, WA 98195, 206-285-1840, mpfort@u.washington.edu and Alan Berkman, MD, Columbia University, 936 Woodycrest Ave, Bronx, NY 99999.

In its 1998 annual report, the UNDP calculated that it would take less than 4% of the combined wealth of the 225 richest individuals in the world to achieve and maintain access to basic health care, reproductive health care, adequate food, safe water and adequate sanitation for all people living on the planet. In the United States, more than 40 million people do not have access to health care. Globally, 95% of the people living with HIV/AIDS do not have access to affordable treatment. Resource distribution is vastly unequal and as the gap between the rich and the poor increases both within and between nations, and pressure increases worldwide to open markets to free trade and to privatize social services, public health decline is imminent.

There are countless opportunities to build a movement for health and social justice both by linking with other sectors and working on health-specific issues. In this session speakers will present their experiences and discuss what participants can do to advocate for public health and social justice both locally and globally.

Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of the session, the participants in this session will be able to

• Develop a plan for how his or her work can be linked to the public health and social justice movement; and
• Identify opportunities for public health advocacy, both locally and globally.

Keywords: Public Health Advocacy, Social Justice

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.