Charts

The Commission provides an in-depth collection of graphical data ready to download into relevant research and presentations. Charts may be reproduced without permission provided the following attribution is noted: “Courtesy of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Commission to Build a Healthier America.”  Additional source information must also be included for any data reproduced.

  • A Mom's Education, A Baby's Chances of Survival

    Babies born to mothers who did not finish high school are nearly twice as likely to die before their first birthdays as babies born to college graduates.

  • A Short Distance to Large Disparities in Health

    Life span disparities reflect differences in wealth, education and environment across all community residents. The differences are even more dramatic - sometimes double - if you compare black and white residents.

  • America Is Not Getting Good Value for Its Health Dollar

    The U.S. spends more money per person on health than any other country, but our lives are shorter—by nearly four years—than expected based on health expenditures.

  • Americans Have Shorter Lives than Expected Based on Income

    Life expectancy is shorter in the U.S. than in some countries with per capita incomes half as large as ours. Based on per capita income, U.S. life expectancy at birth should be nearly three years longer.

  • Health Varies by Income and Across Racial or Ethnic Groups

    Lower income generally means worse health. Racial or ethnic differences in health status are also evident: Poor or fair health is much more common among black and Hispanic adults than among white adults.

  • Higher Income, Longer Life

    Adult life expectancy increases with increasing income. Men and women in the highest-income group can expect to live at least six and a half years longer than poor men and women.

  • Income Is Linked with Health Regardless of Racial or Ethnic Group

    Differences in health status by income do not simply reflect differences by race or ethnicity; differences in health can be seen within each racial or ethnic group. Both income and racial or ethnic group matter.

  • Increasing Income Inequality

    The incomes of the wealthiest 20 percent of Americans have increased dramatically, while the rest of the population has experienced little improvement in income.

  • Increasing Inequality in Where Americans Live

    The percentage of middle-income neighborhoods has been shrinking, while the percentage of both very high-income and very low-income neighborhoods has increased.

  • Influences on Health: Broadening the Focus

    Health is shaped by many influences, including age, sex, genetic make-up, medical care, individual behaviors and other factors not shown in this diagram. Behaviors, as well as receipt of medical care, are shaped by living and working conditions, which in turn are shaped by economic and social opportunities and resources.

  • Less Education, Worse Health

    Less education is linked with worse health. Compared with college graduates, adults who have not finished high school are more than four times as likely to be in poor or fair health.

  • Life Expectancy: Where You Live Matters

    In Wake County, home to the state capital of Raleigh, N.C., the average life expectancy is 78.1 years. In Robeson County--just three counties away--life expectancy is 6.6 years less. But early childhood development programs in North Carolina are increasing the chances of living longer and healthier lives.

  • Losing Ground in Health: Infant Mortality

    We are losing ground among industrialized countries with respect to important health indicators: Our ranking for infant mortality (IMR) has slipped from 18th in 1980 to 25th in 2002.

  • Losing Ground in Health: Life Expectancy

    In 1980, the U.S. ranked 14th among industrialized countries in life expectancy (LE) at birth. By 2003, we had slipped to 23rd place.

  • Lower Income Is Linked with Worse Health

    Diabetes decreases with increasing income. Diabetes is twice as common among poor adults as those in the highest-income group. Lower-income adults are also more likely to have heart disease. The prevalence of heart disease is nearly 50 percent higher among poor adults than among adults in the highest-income group.

  • Lower Income, More Chronic Illness

    Nearly one in every three poor adults has their activity limited by chronic illness, compared with fewer than one in 10 adults in the highest-income group.

  • Lower Income, Worse Health

    Lower income is linked with worse health. Compared with adults in the highest- income group, poor adults are nearly five times as likely to be in poor or fair health.

  • Mapping Disease

    Disease varies geographically. For example, higher rates of death due to heart disease are often seen in areas where fewer adults have college educations.

  • Mapping Education

    Educational attainment among adults varies markedly across different regions of the country.

  • More Child Poverty in America

    The U.S. has higher rates of child poverty than many other countries. In 2000, one-fifth of American children were poor—a proportion that was nine times higher than in Denmark.

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