(Washington, D.C., Wednesday, July 24, 2019) – According to research from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, the United States has the largest per capita healthcare expenditures, yet data from the World Health Organization show that life expectancy in the United States ranks 30th.
Social determinants – like poverty, environment, access to housing and transportation, literacy, and violence – based on where we live, work, and play have an outsized role in our health and wellness.
Eighty to ninety percent of our health is attributable to factors other than clinical care. Communities are addressing issues before they escalate into significant health problems. The most effective interventions prevent health issues altogether.
The BUILD Health Challenge’s unique approach supports bold, upstream, integrated, local, data-driven community partnerships that turn potential issues into pillars that underpin a community’s health and wellness.
The BUILD Health Challenge supports community partnerships – comprised of non-profits, health systems, and public health departments – to prevent long-term health problems by addressing issues associated with social determinants of health early.
An innovative funding collaborative and award program, The BUILD Health Challenge is contributing to the creation of a new norm in the U.S. BUILD is putting multi-sector, community-driven partnerships at the center of health to reduce health disparities caused by system-based or social inequity.
BUILD is a national program designed to support partnerships between community-based organizations, health departments, and hospitals/health systems that are working to address important health issues in their community. Each community collaborative addresses root causes of chronic disease (also commonly referred to as the social determinants of health) in their local area by leveraging multisector partnerships, and working with their local community. To date, BUILD has supported 37 projects in 21 states and Washington, D.C.