From education to agriculture, transportation to recreation – The laws, policies and funding priorities at all levels of government affect everyone’s health.
Health in All Policies
Health in All Policies (HiAP) is an approach to improving health that considers health in decision-making across all sectors, including government, education, economics, and industry. To effectively support and improve population health, policies should consider the social determinants of health as well as the physical and mental determinants of health that may lead to health inequities.
Healthy public policies promote the health of whole communities by:
- Contributing to overall economic productivity
- Reducing costs to the healthcare system
- Increasing efficiencies and cost effectiveness between government Ministries and departments
- Addressing the social factors known to impact population health (e.g., healthier people have fewer days off work, and contribute to overall economic productivity)
- Improving collaboration across all sectors
- Creating opportunities for health and well-being, especially for individuals and populations that are under resourced
Visit the National Collaborating Centre for Healthy Public Policy for more information, or learn more about health equity and fairness.