Office of Health equity

The Office of Health Equity (OHE) was established, as authorized by Section 131019.5 of the California Health and Safety Code (PDF). The OHE provides a key leadership role to reduce health and mental health disparities experienced by vulnerable communities in California.

A priority of this groundbreaking office is building of cross-sectoral partnerships. The work of OHE is informed in part, by their advisory committee and stakeholder meetings. The office works with community-based organizations and local governmental agencies to ensure that community perspectives and input help to shape a health equity lens in policies and strategic plans, recommendations, and implementation activities.

Demographic Report on Health and Mental Health Equity in California, 2023 (PDF)

The “Demographic Report,” starting with the inaugural Portrait of Promise (PDF) in 2015, presents background and evidence on the root causes and consequences of health inequities in California. This report explores a broad range of socioeconomic forces that shape the health of entire communities, especially the vulnerable and underserved communities. View all prior Demographic Reports through the Demographic Report Webpage.

Demographic Report

OHE Advisory Committee

Climate Change & Health

Reducing Disparities Project

Health Equity FAQs

What is health equity

Health equity refers to efforts to ensure that all people have full and equal access to opportunities that enable them to lead
healthy lives. (CA Health and Safety Code Section 131019.5)

What are health and mental health disparities

Health and mental health disparities are differences in health and mental health status among distinct segments of the
population, including differences that occur by gender, age, race or ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender identity, education or
income, disability or functional impairment, or geographic location, or the combination
of any of these factors.

What are health inequities?

Health and mental health inequities are disparities in health or mental health, or the factors that shape health, that are systemic
and avoidable and, therefore, considered unjust or unfair.

What are the determinants of equity?

Determinants of equity are defined as the social, economic, geographic, political, and physical environmental conditions that lead to the creation of a fair and just society

What are vulnerable communities

Vulnerable communities include, but are not limited to women; racial or ethnic groups; low-income individuals and families;
individuals who are incarcerated or have been incarcerated; individuals with disabilities; individuals with mental health conditions; children; youth and young adults; seniors;
immigrants and refugees; individuals who are limited English proficient (LEP); and Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer,
and Questioning (LGBTQQ) communities, or combinations of these populations. (CA Health and Safety Code Section 131019.5)

What are vulnerable places?

Vulnerable places are places or communities with inequities in the social, economic, educational, or physical environment
or environmental health and that have insufficient resources or capacity to protect and promote the health and well-being of
their residents. (CA Health and Safety Code Section 131019.5)

What determines your health?

At every stage of life, health is determined by complex interactions between social and economic factors, the physical environment and individual behavior. These factors are referred to as 'determinants of health'.

What are the social determinants of health?

The World Health Organisation (WHO) defines the social determinants of health as the conditions in which people are born, grow, live, work and age. These circumstances are shaped by the distribution of money, power and resources at global, national and local levels.

What is the mission of the Office of Health Equity?

The mission of the Office of Health Equity is to promote equitable social, economic, and environmental conditions to achieve optimal health, mental health, and well-being for all.

How is the Office of Health Equity addressing health and mental health inequities?

In 2016, the Office of Health Equity published Portrait of Promise: The Statewide Plan to Promote Health and Mental Health Equity. In that plan, we identified three strategic priorities to address inequity. Through assessment, yield knowledge of the problems and the possibilities. Through communication, foster shared understanding. Through infrastructure development, empower residents and their
institutions to act effectively. Each of these priorities is addressed fully in the document available on the OHE website.

Why is it so important to address health and mental health inequities?

Inequities in health status are quite literally a matter
of life and death, shown by differences in death
rates and life expectancy among the state’s most vulnerable populations. Similar gaps among population groups exist for numerous chronic health conditions that drive the disparities in death rates.

Beyond the moral case for addressing inequity, there is also a strong economic argument. Reducing health inequities will yield savings in health care costs. A study in 2011 estimated that more than 30 percent of direct medical costs faced by
African Americans, Hispanics, and Asian Americans were excess costs due to health inequities – more than $230 billion over a
three-year period, plus indirect costs of $1 trillion in lower workplace productivity due to associated illness and premature death. That three-year total of “excess costs” due to
health disparities is equal to approximately half the total of all U.S. health care spending.

OHE Programs

To carry out our work, the Office of Health Equity is organized into various operational programs whose focus is to strengthen the Department of Public Health’s ability to advise and assist other state departments, provide data that facilitates action, and engage partners who share our commitment in eliminating inequities in health and mental health across the state. Learn more about these programs below:

Advancing Community Equity Branch (ACE)

Business Operations Unit

Climate Change & Health Equity Branch (CCHEB)

Community Development & Engagement Section (CDES)

Gender Health Equity Section (GHES)

Health Equity Research & Statistics Section (HERSS)

Page Last Updated : October 10, 2024