Transportation barriers prevent many Detroiters from accessing vital care at John Mailey’s clinic, where weight and blood pressure management are offered. This issue contributes to higher hospitalization rates and a $150 billion annual cost to the U.S. healthcare system.

In 2013, Deanne Austin bled for six weeks straight. Before the incident, a physician diagnosed her with polycystic ovary syndrome, a hormonal disorder that intensifies menstrual symptoms. Her body ached from cramps and migraines.   “It can be very draining,” Austin, who lives in Detroit, said of her condition, which is manageable but has no cure. […]

Alexandra Murphy noticed that transportation research followed a distinct pattern.  Engineers and urban planners would examine the man-made elements of a city—buildings, roads, bridges, parks, buses or trains—with a focus on neighborhoods or census tracts. But another “profound” problem remained largely understudied, Murphy said, even among poverty researchers.  People who can’t afford to buy and […]