Health disparity is defined as a health difference that is closely linked with social, economic, and/or environmental disadvantage.

• A. A random variation in health outcomes.
• B. A health difference not related to social status.
• C. A health difference closely linked to social, economic, and environmental disadvantage.
• D. An individual difference in health due to genetics.

Answer: (C)

Health disparities arise when differences in health outcomes are systematically linked to social, economic, and environmental conditions. The best description here is the one that explicitly notes a health difference closely tied to social, economic, and environmental disadvantage, because it anchors health outcomes in the broader context of social determinants of health—the conditions in which people live, work, and play that influence risk and access to resources.

This framing matters because, while genetics and biology play a role in health, health disparities focus on how social and environmental factors create unequal health outcomes across groups. The other ideas don’t fit this concept: random variation describes outcomes without a systematic social pattern, a difference not related to social status ignores the very determinants that drive disparities, and genetics points to biological factors without the social context that makes disparities avoidable and unfair.