title: Housing Policies and Health Inequalities.
abstract: A large body of literature shows the link between inadequate housing conditions and poor physical and mental health. The aim of this paper is to summarize the research on the impact of local housing policies on health inequalities, focusing on the issues of access to housing and fuel poverty as studied in the SOPHIE project. Our case studies in Spain showed that people facing housing insecurity, experienced intense levels of mental distress. We found that access to secure and adequate housing can improve the health of these populations, therefore, public policies that address housing instability and their consequences are urgently needed. Housing conditions related to fuel poverty are associated with poorer health and are unevenly distributed across Europe. We found possible positive effects of façade insulation interventions on cold-related mortality in women living in social housing; but not in men. Policies on housing energy efficiency can reduce the health consequences of fuel poverty, but need to be free to users, target the most vulnerable groups and be adaptable to their needs.
authors.affiliation: 1 Agència de Salut Pública de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.|2 CIBER Epidemiología y Salud Pública (CIBERESP), Madrid, Spain.|3 Institut d'Investigació Biomèdica (IIB Sant Pau), Barcelona, Spain.|4 Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona, Spain.
authors.forename: Marc
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Marí-Dell'Olmo
authors.affiliation: 1 Agència de Salut Pública de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.|3 Institut d'Investigació Biomèdica (IIB Sant Pau), Barcelona, Spain.
authors.forename: Ana M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Novoa
authors.affiliation: 1 Agència de Salut Pública de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.|2 CIBER Epidemiología y Salud Pública (CIBERESP), Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Lluís
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Camprubí
authors.affiliation: 1 Agència de Salut Pública de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.|4 Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona, Spain.
authors.forename: Andrés
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Peralta
authors.affiliation: 1 Agència de Salut Pública de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.|4 Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona, Spain.|5 Universidad de La Frontera, Temuco, Chile.
authors.forename: Hugo
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Vásquez-Vera
authors.affiliation: 4 Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona, Spain.
authors.forename: Jordi
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Bosch
authors.affiliation: 1 Agència de Salut Pública de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.
authors.forename: Jordi
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Amat
authors.affiliation: 6 Caritas Diocesana de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.
authors.forename: Fernando
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Díaz
authors.affiliation: 1 Agència de Salut Pública de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.|2 CIBER Epidemiología y Salud Pública (CIBERESP), Madrid, Spain.|3 Institut d'Investigació Biomèdica (IIB Sant Pau), Barcelona, Spain.
authors.forename: Laia
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Palència
authors.affiliation: 1 Agència de Salut Pública de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.|7 University of Michigan School of Public Health, Michigan, USA.
authors.forename: Roshanak
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Mehdipanah
authors.affiliation: 1 Agència de Salut Pública de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.|2 CIBER Epidemiología y Salud Pública (CIBERESP), Madrid, Spain.|3 Institut d'Investigació Biomèdica (IIB Sant Pau), Barcelona, Spain.|4 Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona, Spain.
authors.forename: Maica
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Rodríguez-Sanz
authors.affiliation: 1 Agència de Salut Pública de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.|2 CIBER Epidemiología y Salud Pública (CIBERESP), Madrid, Spain.|3 Institut d'Investigació Biomèdica (IIB Sant Pau), Barcelona, Spain.
authors.forename: Davide
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Malmusi
authors.affiliation: 1 Agència de Salut Pública de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.|2 CIBER Epidemiología y Salud Pública (CIBERESP), Madrid, Spain.|3 Institut d'Investigació Biomèdica (IIB Sant Pau), Barcelona, Spain.|4 Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona, Spain.
authors.forename: Carme
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Borrell
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D054625:Healthcare Disparities; D006361:Heating; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology / Q000401:mortality / Q000517:prevention & control; D011638:Public Housing; D011640:Public Policy; D013030:Spain / Q000453:epidemiology
keywords: cold housing; energy efficiency; evaluation studies; eviction; foreclosure; fuel poverty; housing affordability; housing instability; mental health; mortality; retrofitting; self-related health