Education and Health: Long-Term Trends by Race, Ethnicity, and Geography, 1997-2017

This report assesses trends in self-reported measures of general health, mental health, activity limitations, and obesity by educational attainment from 1997-2017, using data from the National Health Interview Survey. It also assesses how health disparities by educational attainment have changed over time by race and ethnicity and by rural and urban geography. Finally, it considers whether the Affordable Care Act may have contributed to a narrowing of health disparities by education.

Adults with less education have lower life expectancy, increased risk for chronic conditions, and lower self-reported health status than their more-educated counterparts.