ASHEVILLE, NC – September 13, 2024 – The Mountain Area Health Education Center (MAHEC) is hosting the 1st annual Health is Wealth Summit about ‘closing the life expectancy gap in Western North Carolina (WNC)’ on October 5th. The purpose of the conference is to address poverty as a public health issue. Attendees will meet the people behind local services that can improve health and provide opportunities to advocate for anti-poverty measures.
Our economic circumstances have a large effect on our health and well-being. Everyone’s health is affected by where we live, work, learn and play and by circumstances in our families, communities and neighborhoods.
Poverty is a leading cause of death in the U.S. Only cancer, heart disease, and smoking contributed to more deaths in 2019 than persons who lived in poverty for 10 continuous years, according to a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine last year. The same study also showed that persons who lived in poverty for 1 year had a 42% excess risk for death. Short-term poverty contributed to more deaths in 2019 than accidents, lung disease, stroke, suicide and homicide.
The summit will be held from 9:30 am to 4 pm at MAHEC, including a Health & Advocacy Fair from 1 to 3 pm. The conference and fair are open to the public. The target audience for the conference are medical providers, community-based organizations, and human service organizations. Admission is free for those who register. You can sign-up for the full-day meeting at https://mahec.net/home/event/74082 or just for the fair at https://ow.ly/cbCv50Tn7lh
You should attend this conference if you want to:
- Change the narrative about poverty
- Learn about existing efforts to fight poverty in WNC
- Promote opportunities to fight poverty
Listen to the full report below:
Contact: Dr. Dick Needleman, Health reporter, 103.3 AshevilleFM, healthyasheville@ashevillefm.org