NYU Wagner Hosts Health Equity Today: The Place Principle Panel Discussion
On Friday, February 7, 2025, NYU Wagner hosted its annual Health Equity Today event. The Health Equity Today event series—conceived by Dr. Richard Park, a physician, entrepreneur, and esteemed member of NYU Wagner's Health Advisory Board, alongside Professor Carla Jackie Sampson, director of the NYU Wagner Online Master of Health Administration and Health Policy and Management programs—convenes experts in health and facilitates dialogue on the most pressing issues surrounding healthcare access, the social determinants of health, and policy reform. The topic of this year’s panel discussion was The Place Principle, an exploration of how geographic location can impact access to healthcare, availability of resources, and overall well-being.
The panel discussion—the first event held in NYU Wagner’s new event space on 17th Street—was moderated by current NYU Wagner Online Master of Health Administration (MHA) student Giovanney Mendoza and featured renowned panelists Olubenga Ogedegbe, MD, MP, Director, Institute for Excellence in Health Equity, Grossman School of Medicine/NYU Langone Health and Lynn Mertz, PhD, MUP, Senior Strategic Policy Advisor Global Thought Leadership – Health Equity, AARP.
Ogedegbe and Mertz discussed how location can have a tremendous impact on the social determinants of health on an extremely granular level. They noted that the discussion goes beyond simply distinguishing between urban, rural, and suburban environments, explaining that different zip codes within the same city—even neighboring areas—can have vastly different needs when it comes to healthcare.
Location-based impacts can include availability and proximity of affordable and healthy food options; access to quality and affordable care; affordability and accessibility of prescriptions; and access to community resources.
Mertz discussed AARP’s livability tool, an online calculator that gives each zip code across the country a “livability” score, based on factors related to housing, neighborhood, transportation, environment, health, engagement, and opportunity. She discussed the company’s methodology in building the tool, as well as how individuals can use it to find a community best suited to their needs.
Both Ogedegbe and Mertz both emphasized the importance of community engagement and support in today’s political climate, underscoring the significance of advocating for policy on the local and state levels. They also discussed that, in health equity work, bringing the community you’re serving into the discussions is critical in meeting their needs most effectively.
The event was part of the Online MHA students Immersion experience, in which a cohort of students from the program come together in person at Wagner for timely discussions about the field, honing skills to succeed in the program, and networking with their peers, faculty members, program alumni, and industry professionals.
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Photos ©NYU Photo Bureau: Slezak
