Health and US Politics
Setup
White working-class voters without a college education are most vulnerable to diseases of despair — suicide, drug overdoses, and alcohol-related liver disease — and they are also most likely to have voted for President Trump. This population is deeply concerned about rising health care costs, according to focus groups conducted by the Kaiser Family Foundation, and more likely to lose their health insurance if the Affordable Care Act is repealed. One thing both political parties keep learning is that no matter how dissatisfied the American public is with the health care system, doing anything about it is risky business. What do we know about the connections between health and politics, and why do they matter?
Explore More
USA

Today's kids are coming of age against a backdrop of political, social, technological, and economic upheaval. While these circumstances are shaping a precocious generation tha...

From the Supreme Court's ruling on abortion rights to public health's role in addressing gun violence to the devastating human toll of the war in Ukraine, this year's Aspen Id...

Health workers often face grueling working conditions. They regularly confront trauma, work long hours, are exposed to physical danger, and must keep pace with the demands of...
From blockchain to back to school and virus-hunting to bridging divides, speakers at the 2021 Aspen Ideas Festival addressed issues in a new kind of world—one touched, and cha...

In America, millions of people struggle with mental health including depression, anxiety, and more — all further exacerbated by living through a pandemic. The National Allianc...

For people with post-traumatic stress disorder, therapy assisted by the drug MDMA may provide lasting relief, with a new way of seeing their trauma and themselves. Rachel Yehu...

The highest court often seems distanced from our day-to-day lives, but the rulings that come out of the Supreme Court are woven into the fabric of the nation. Though it aims t...

Gen-Z for Change's Aidan Kohn-Murphy on youth-led movements, his advice for young activists, and why it's impossible to lose hope.



Monkeypox has now been declared a public health emergency in the US and a global emergency by the World Health Organization. What do we know about this virus and the current o...

On a weekly basis, 32 million Americans spend 2 hours at one of 30,000 laundromats across the country. What if that time and space could be used to meet people where they are...



After two devastating years fighting the pandemic, how do we rebuild and support stronger health care and public health workforces? Dave Chokshi, who helped lead New York Cit...





Soon, we may be able to visualize any biological process in the human body, at any scale, in real time. Here’s what it will take to get there. Presented by Chan Zuckerberg Ini...




Our changing climate represents one of the greatest challenges to health for the 21st century. Though all of humankind is at risk, communities with weak health and public heal...