An Act to Combat Poverty and Social Exclusion (R.S.Q., chapter L-7): History
Today, the links between poverty and health are well-established (Phipps, 2003) and the resulting inequalities in health have proven to be persistent (Whitehead & Dahlgren, 2007). Indeed, the population groups with the worst health status are materially underprivileged and socially excluded (De Koninck et al., 2008), leading many analysts to single out poverty as one of the primary determinants of health.
In 2002, the Government of Québec passed An Act to Combat Poverty and Social Exclusion (R.S.Q., c. L-7). This legislation has received interest from the public health community because it is an example of healthy public policy.
This series of background papers presents the history that preceded this legislation, and highlights main elements of its application. In this background document, we address the following question:
- What are the events that led to the adoption of An Act to Combat Poverty and Social Exclusion?