Health and Well-Being

Abstract

Health is discussed as both a generalized and a very relative concept, defined to include not only freedom from physical disease and pain, but also social well-being. The im portance of environmental factors is stressed. Measuring health status in the past has been largely dependent on the negative aspects of health—death rate and morbidity. Al though still important, they no longer yield enough information on which to establish goals and determine policy. Increasing emphasis has been placed on disability, costs, and the social and emotional consequences of disease. During the past thirty years, the federal government has been increasingly involved in a number of health-care programs designed to: (1) advance research; (2) meet manpower, facility, and other resource re quirements; (3) stimulate local, regional, and state initiative and improved co-operation with the federal government; (4) remove financial barriers; (5) improve quality and availability of services; and (6) protect the consumer and improve the quality of our environment.