New push to improve health

Published on 29/11/2012 01:06

AN EXPERT group set up to reduce the health gap between the richest and the poorest Scots meets for the first time today.

The Ministerial Taskforce of Health Inequalities was established to suggest new ways to tackle the problem. Public health minister Michael Matheson, who chairs the group, said the health gap between the rich and poor was one of the greatest challenges facing Scotland.

A report published last year found that men in the wealthiest areas could expect to live for 
81.4 years, some 13.2 longer than males in the most deprived areas. The equivalent for women is 84.6, nearly nine years more than those in the poorest communities.