VIRTUAL: Gaps in health equity: Insights from history, lessons from Covid-19, and ideas for the future

Unequal access to the Covid-19 vaccine magnifies long-standing gaps in health equity. Will this crisis propel us into a new discussion of health equity, and change our understanding of the global partnerships needed to achieve it? And how can we draw on lessons from the past in order to design a more equitable future?
Even in the cases of most urgent need, both healthcare and health outcomes continue to be determined by patterns of global income and wealth. These inequities in preventative care, disease incidence, and treatment options are underscored by historical and structural factors, including histories of colonialism, that heighten the obstacles to achieving health equity. Low-income countries now face not only the challenge of recovering from the effects of Covid-19, but also the long-term consequences of disruption to their already fragile healthcare systems. Is it time to rethink the coordination and collaboration needed to close the health equity gap?
The panelists for the 10th Yale Development Dialogue are leading voices in understanding the health and healthcare challenges low-income countries face. They have been at the forefront of the global health agenda, having held senior positions in organisations such as the International Rescue Committee, pioneered methods of increasing healthcare access, and written extensively on the history of public health.
Panelists:
Sunil Amrith, the Renu and Anand Dhawan Professor of History at Yale.
Anne-Emanuelle Birn, Professor of Critical Development Studies and of Social and Behavioural Health Sciences at the Dalla Lana School of Public Health at University of Toronto.
Pascaline Dupas, Professor of Economics at Stanford University and the faculty director of the Stanford King Center on Global Development.
Dr. Mesfin Teklu Tessema, Head of the Health Unit at the International Rescue Committee, and IRC’s senior leader in Health.
Moderator:
Catherine Cheney ‘10, Senior Reporter for Devex.