New study reveals housing crisis as major health challenge

A new study sheds light on the hidden health crisis linked to poor housing conditions in Israel. Drawing on global research and local data, the authors call for an urgent, interdisciplinary effort to reform housing policy as a matter of public health. Without such action, they warn, inequalities in shelter access and living conditions will continue to endanger the wellbeing of Israel's most vulnerable populations.

When Israelis think about health, they may picture hospitals, doctors, or the rising cost of prescription drugs. But a new integrative study by Jordan Hannink Attal (Hebrew University and the University of Melbourne) and Prof. Yehuda Neumark (Hebrew University) suggests the most important factor may be much closer to home—literally.

Published in the Israel Journal of Health Policy Research, the article reveals a troubling link between housing conditions and public health across Israel. The study argues that chronic underinvestment in affordable, stable, and quality housing is not just a social or economic issue—it's a public health emergency.

Drawing on international models and decades of global research, Attal and Neumark call attention to the absence of local data, weak rental protections, deteriorating public housing stock, and gaping inequalities in shelter access—especially in the periphery, among Bedouin communities, and in ultra-Orthodox neighborhoods. The authors emphasize that more than 30% of Israelis spend over a third of their income on housing, and for the poorest households, that figure jumps to over 50%.

"This level of financial strain has demonstrable effects on both mental and physical health," they write.

Housing, they argue, should be treated as a "stand-alone determinant of health." Mold, poor ventilation, crowding, and temperature extremes are not just inconvenient—they are linked to asthma, cardiovascular disease, and depression.

Meanwhile, decades-old buildings lack adequate insulation or safe rooms (shelters required under Israeli law), leaving residents vulnerable not only to environmental hazards but also to regional conflict.

What makes the situation more urgent is the lack of comprehensive, interdisciplinary research at the national level. "Unlike other high-income countries," the researchers note, "Israel does not systematically collect data on the health impacts of poor housing." In contrast, countries like New Zealand and Australia have integrated health and housing research centers directly into policymaking bodies—producing measurable improvements in both health outcomes and building quality.

Attal and Neumark propose a similar path forward: a national, government-supported housing and health research initiative that brings together epidemiologists, urban planners, architects, and economists to assess and track risk factors. The long-term goal? Not just research, but policy change.

"This is not only an economic necessity," they conclude. "It is a moral imperative in a democratic society."