Final answer:
Disparities between Congress members and the American public are present in income, education, gender, and race, with racial disparities being highly significant due to their impact on health outcomes and access to care.
Step-by-step explanation:
Some disparities between the members of Congress and the American public include income disparities, education disparities, gender disparities, and racial disparities. These disparities reflect the differences in socioeconomic status, educational attainment, gender representation, and racial composition between the general population and elected officials. Of these, the most significant disparity that aligns closely with the issues of health and social determinants of health (SDOH) is racial disparities. Despite the Civil Rights movement's efforts, racial disparities have widened since the 1980s due to inequalities in healthcare delivery, poor quality of care, and reduced access to care for minority groups. A key factor contributing to these health disparities includes discrimination, which impacts various aspects of life such as employment, housing, and the criminal justice system. For example, studies have found evidence of discrimination in the labor market and housing, where biases in hiring practices and unfair treatment in housing have perpetuated the wage and living conditions gap between races.