Key insights from EY's 2nd Annual Health Equity Survey reveal significant trends and expectations:

• Survey Respondents: 500 health equity leaders from provider, payer, life sciences, government, and nonprofit and community organizations were surveyed.
• Increased Prioritization: 73% of respondents expect an increase in the prioritization of health equity over the next year.
• Investment Trends: While the majority expect investments in health equity to increase, they also identify competing priorities as a significant barrier to strategy execution.
• Quantifiable Benefits: Investments in health equity have led to quantifiable benefits for both the organizations’ bottom line and the health outcomes of the populations served.
• Priority Trends: The top priorities — access to health equity and quality, and health equity strategy development — remain consistent with 2023. However, there's a shift toward focusing on addressing downstream outcomes and a decreased focus on impacting upstream social determinants of health.
• Organizational Size and Maturity: Organizational size by annual revenue is emerging as a surrogate for the perceived maturity of health equity efforts, suggesting that access to greater resources plays a critical role in taking action.

Survey Methodology

Advancing health equity remains a social, political, economic, and ethical priority. Various stakeholders, including providers, payers, life sciences companies, government agencies, and nonprofit and community-based organizations, are working individually and collaboratively to improve health outcomes and narrow gaps. A greater understanding of what is being done, what is working, where challenges persist, and what trends will inform future progress is needed. The EY Center for Health Equity’s inaugural Health Equity Outlook Report, published in 2023, established a baseline understanding of health equity efforts across the health ecosystem to advance practice. Findings from the 2024 edition of the annual survey, based on responses from 500 health equity leaders across stakeholder groups, provide an updated view of where we are and where we are going in health equity practice. In-depth views are provided of organizations’ current and expected health equity priorities and investments, technology actions and maturity, and workforce and community engagement.