Health Equity

• PC4YOU utilizes the Neighborhood Stress Score (NSS) in its risk calculations. The NSS uses a patient’s street address and corresponding census data to estimate social complexity. Current formulas account for medical complexity and ignore social complexity. By accounting for both social and medical complexity, resources will be allocated to where they are needed most. 

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• PC4YOU incentivizes the use of Transformers, many of which improve access to care and address social drivers of health.

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• Primary Care is a powerful force for health equity, Doubling investment in primary care is the most powerful lever we have available to significantly increase health equity.

• According to a 2023 report published by the BCBSMA Foundation and the Massachusetts Health Equity Compact, health inequities cost the state $5.9 billion annually. 

  • $1.5 billion is the cost of avoidable health care spending due to poorer health (2% of total Massachusetts annual health spending)

  • $1.4 billion is the cost of lost labor productivity due to poorer health

    • The potential gain in labor of achieving health equity for POC in Mass is ~27,000 additional FTEs/year

  • $3.0 billion is the cost of premature death

    • Estimated $100,000 in economic value for every year of life lost to premature mortality 

  • Of the $5.9 billion in economic burden associated with health inequities, 49% was due to inequities experienced by Black population, 44% by Hispanic/Latino, 6% by Asians

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• By 2050, this number is projected to grow to $11.2 billion