Strengthening Public Health and Ending the Pandemic
CAP works to strengthen public health systems, respond to COVID-19 in equitable and sustainable ways, and improve health care coverage, access and affordability.
A pop-up COVID-19 vaccination clinic is seen in California. (Getty/Al Seib/Los Angeles Times)
Vaccination is key to ending the COVID-19 pandemic and avoiding preventable illness, death, and economic loss. We promote equitable vaccine policy and leveraging governmental and employers’ power to promote vaccination and pandemic recovery.
Strengthening public health infrastructure
The COVID-19 pandemic has further exposed inequities and existing weaknesses in the United States’ public health infrastructure. We’re focused on improving health equity by investing in public health, addressing social and economic factors that affect health, and preparing for future health threats.
Improving access to affordable health coverage
We’re dedicated to bolstering affordable, high-quality health coverage options. By building on the Affordable Care Act, closing the Medicaid coverage gap, and innovating progressive solutions, we envision a world in which everyone can access care.
Lowering health care prices and consumer costs
Health care affordability is a top consumer concern, and prices for health care and prescription drugs are inaccessibly high for many. One of our key priorities is improving America’s health by lowering costs to ensure all people can afford to manage their health.
By the Numbers
1.9
Life expectancy fell by 1.9 years in the pandemic—8.5 times more than peer countries.
Woolf, “Effect of the covid-19 pandemic in 2020 on life expectancy across populations” (2021).
2x
The U.S. spends 2 times more as peer countries on health, with 8% lower life expectancy.
CAP, “The Declining Health of Americans” (2021).
7,000
Closing the Medicaid coverage gap would save 7,000 lives per year.
CAP, “Closing the Medicaid Coverage Gap Would Save 7,000 Lives Each Year” (2021).
2.8x
COVID hospitalized Black and Hispanic people at a rate 2.8 times higher than white people.
CDC, “Risk for COVID-19 Infection, Hospitalization, and Death by Race/Ethnicity” (2021).
The United States Must Advance Economic Security for Disabled LGBTQI+ Workers
Data indicate that disabled LGBTQI+ workers experience higher rates of barriers to obtaining and maintaining employment, resulting in difficulties in obtaining economic security.
Social and Economic Policies Can Help Reverse Americans’ Declining Health
To meaningfully improve the health of Americans, new policies must target all of the drivers of health, including education, economic stability, neighborhoods and environments, social and community well-being, and historic inequities.
How Weak Safety Net Policies Exacerbate Regional and Racial Inequality
While all low-income individuals and families, particularly those of color, struggle to avoid falling into poverty, some receive less support solely because of where they live.
In 2021, the United States has seen the highest number of abortion restrictions made law in a single year, and the legal context in which this newly enacted legislation will operate is particularly tenuous.
Addressing Tax System Failings That Favor Billionaires and Corporations
Biden’s Build Back Better plan addresses key failings of the U.S. tax system that let the wealthy and corporations avoid paying their fair share; Congress can and should do even more.
Extreme Weather Cost U.S. Taxpayers $99 Billion Last Year, and It Is Getting Worse
The financial toll of extreme weather events fueled by climate change is at an all-time high and requires that Congress take bold action to move the country toward a 100 percent clean future.
