Many American workers are unwell. They live with serious economic insecurity; succumb to diabetes, depression, and addiction at alarming rates; and struggle to balance the conflicting needs of their employers, their families, and their own well-being. That outlook won’t improve until we think of health as the driver of prosperity — not just the product of it.

In the U.S., we spend extravagantly on treating illness but spend proportionally less on keeping people healthy than most developed nations. But research shows a strong correlation between healthy communities with little economic disparity and healthy economies. People live longer in the nation's more equal states. What can we do to change the country's focus from health care as a cost with limited returns, to health as an investment that pays off over the long term — socially and economically? How can we better elevate health as a policy priority?

Join New America NYC for a conversation on the future of health and wellness — and what both governments and the private sector can do to improve its outlook.

PARTICIPANTS

Esther Dyson @edyson
Executive Founder, Way to Wellville, and health investor

Dr. Herminia Palacio @HerminiaPalacio
Deputy Mayor for Health and Human Services, City of New York

Manmeet Kaur @ManmeetKaurNY
Founder and Executive Director, City Health Works

Melanie Lavelle @Mglavelle
Founder, Benefit Kitchen

Dan Goldberg @DanCGoldberg
Senior Health Reporter, Politico