An NIH investment in health equity - the economic impact of the Flint Center for Health Equity Solutions

Cristian I Meghea; Barrett Wallace Montgomery; Roni Ellington; Ling Wang; Clara Barajas; E Yvonne Lewis; Sheridan T Yeary; Laurie A Van Egeren; Debra Furr-Holden

doi:10.1186/s12889-021-11795-5

An NIH investment in health equity - the economic impact of the Flint Center for Health Equity Solutions

BMC Public Health. 2021 Sep 29;21(1):1774. doi: 10.1186/s12889-021-11795-5.

Authors

Cristian I Meghea¹, Barrett Wallace Montgomery², Roni Ellington³, Ling Wang⁴, Clara Barajas⁵, E Yvonne Lewis⁶, Sheridan T Yeary⁷, Laurie A Van Egeren⁸, Debra Furr-Holden⁵

Affiliations

¹ Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Biology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, 48824-1316, USA. meghea@msu.edu.
² Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, 48824-1316, USA.
³ Department of Advanced Studies, Leadership, and Policy, Morgan State University, Baltimore, MD, 21214, USA.
⁴ Department of Medicine, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, 48824-1316, USA.
⁵ Division of Public Health, Michigan State University, Flint, MI, 48502, USA.
⁶ National Center for African American Health Consciousness, Flint, MI, 48501, USA.
⁷ College of Public Affairs, University of Baltimore, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA.
⁸ University Outreach and Engagement, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, 48824-1316, USA.

Abstract

Background: Health disparities are pervasive and are linked to economic losses in the United States of up to $135 billion per year. The Flint Center for Health Equity Solutions (FCHES) is a Transdisciplinary Collaborative Center for health disparities research funded by the National Institute of Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIMHD). The purpose of this study was to estimate the economic impact of the 5-year investment in FCHES in Genesee County, Michigan.

Methods: The estimated impacts of FCHES were calculated using a U.S.-specific input/output (I/O) model, IMPLAN, from IMPLAN Group, LLC., which provides a software system to access geographic specific data regarding economic sector interactions from a variety of sources. This allowed us to model the cross-sector economic activity that occurred throughout Genesee County, Michigan, as a result of the FCHES investment. The overall economic impacts were estimated as the sum of three impact types: 1. Direct (the specific expenditures impact of FCHES and the Scientific Research and Development Services sector); 2. Indirect (the impact on suppliers to FCHES and the Scientific Research and Development Services sector); and 3. Induced (the additional economic impact of the spending of these suppliers and employees in the county economy).

Results: The total FCHES investment amounted to approximately $11 million between 2016 and 2020. Overall, combined direct, indirect, and induced impacts of the total FCHES federal investment in Genesee County included over 161 job-years, over $7.6 million in personal income, and more than $19.2 million in economic output. In addition, this combined economic activity generated close to $2.3 million in state/local and federal tax revenue. The impact multipliers show the ripple effect of the FCHES investment. For example, the overall output of over $19.2 million led to an impact multiplier of 1.75 - every $1 of federal FCHES investment led to an additional $.75 of economic output in Genesee County.

Conclusions: The FCHES research funding yields significant direct economic impacts above and beyond the direct NIH investment of $11 million. The economic impact estimation method may be relevant and generalizable to other large research centers such as FCHES.

Keywords: Economic impact; Health disparities; Return on investment.

Publication types

Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural

MeSH terms

Health Equity*
Health Expenditures
Humans
Investments
Michigan
United States

Grants and funding

U54MD011227/NH/NIH HHS/United States