Iowa Economy: Pulling back the curtain - The lesser-seen impacts of health on Iowa’s economy

Not all economic issues are fast-moving, market-shifting events — some, like health care, can take years or longer for implications to materialize but then deliver a broader impact. On this episode of the Iowa Economy Podcast, public health economists and leaders join host Chris Conetzkey to share one issue or trend related to health that is affecting the state’s economy followed by discussion of contributing factors, downstream effects and what data is, or is not, available to better understand the economic implications of health on our business community. In this episode: • The unquantified role health plays in workers’ productivity and shaping the needs of the multi-generational workforce • How disparities in access to care disproportionately affect health outcomes and costs in rural areas • The factors leading to nursing home and hospital closures in Iowa and the effect on care and communities • Iowa’s cigarette smoking rate and its economic effects Guests: • Andrea Harding, vice president of population health, MercyOne • Jason Semprini, assistant professor, department of public health, Des Moines University Medicine and Health Sciences, Ph.D. • Hari Sharma, associate professor, University of Iowa Department of Public Health, Ph.D. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices