What are some factors that make some people healthy and others ill? Healthy People 2020 identifies five determinants of health that influence the health of individuals and populations. Healthy People 2020 describes them as “a range of personal, social, economic, and environmental factors that influence health status” (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2018, About Determinants of Health, para. 1). Determinants fall into five categories, including (a) policy making, (b) social factors, (c) health services, (d) individual behavior, and (e) biology and genetics.