Broadening the Focus

h h p f s i e o t vercoming Obstacles to Health: a Report from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation to the Commission to Build a Healthier America was issued rom the foundation to the commission at the commision’s 2008 public launch. The purpose was to present the oundation’s rationale for establishing the commission nd provide a conceptual framework and scientifıc guidnce for the commission’s work, summarizing and transating current knowledge about the social determinants f health for an audience of policymakers and advocates. dapted from that report, this paper is intended to lay the oundation for this supplement to the American Journal f Preventive Medicine by providing a statement of the roblem addressed by the commission and a framework or seeking the solutions that are explored more fully in he articles that follow. After presentingnewevidenceproduced for the commision about the extent of unrealized health potential in the .S., a brief overview is provided of the science supporting a ore comprehensive approach to reducing health dispariies and improvinghealthoverall, anda summaryof the case or taking societal action now to address the obstacles to ealth faced by many Americans. While ensuring that ndividuals have access to appropriate medical care and nformation about health-promoting behaviors remains mportant, effective solutions also will require a broader ocus on the contexts that powerfully shape both health ehaviors and health itself. Much remains to be learned bout which strategies are most effective, but current nowledge is suffıcient to indicate promising directions.