This policy update emphasizes the importance of policymakers choosing to increase funding for public health infrastructure and important initiatives, such as health equity, in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
One in three individuals who contract COVID-19 will experience lasting mental health impacts, according to a recent study. This startling discovery underscores the reality facing our nation: the challenges of this last year—the public ...
When rural hospitals close, it increases the distance people must travel for essential healthcare services. The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted and magnified the factors leading to rural hospital closures across the country. Many ...
As COVID spread through the country and infection rates rose in every state, many of the the U.S. Affiliated Pacific Islands (USAPI) received media attention for remaining relatively COVID-free. The USAPI’s unified response in the face of ...
The 2019-2020 flu season had approximately 5 million fewer illnesses than the previous year. Thanks to COVID-19 mitigation efforts like social distancing and increased handwashing—coupled with a higher rate of flu vaccinations among the ...
Every year, ASTHO performs an annual environmental scan to identify these policy and programmatic priorities. The most recent scan occurred from June 2019 to May 2020. Through ongoing collection of data from a variety of sources—including ...
As the country prepares for the inauguration of President-Elect Joseph R. Biden, Jr. on Wednesday, the incoming administration has highlighted several priorities over the next four years. This post is a summary of priorities that are ...
With many of the state and territorial legislatures reconvening over the next few weeks, we can look forward to new (and not-so-new) legislation start to crop up that will impact public health. To help navigate the new legislative ...
I think we all welcomed 2021 with open arms as we look to put the worst of 2020 behind us. We have all been through a lot—we have lost family members and friends to COVID-19, we have seen public health officials harassed and maligned, we ...
Following disruptions to daily life caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, emergency departments saw an increase of mental health-related visits. A June 2021 study showed a significant increase of mental health-related visits among ...
Each September, the United States observes National Preparedness Month, a month dedicated to raising awareness of public health preparedness. Preparedness—a field that readies our nation to respond to a range of emergencies—is a newer ...
Nov. 3, 2021, marks the sixth annual One Health Day, a global campaign to recognize and embrace how public health is connected to the health of animals and our shared environment. In this post, ASTHO talks about One Health with Wayne E. ...
A groundbreaking “all-of-government” approach is getting underway in the U.S. Virgin Islands to more efficiently manage and expend federal grant funding for social determinants of health and overall population health improvement. The ...
As communities around the country continue to navigate the complexities of COVID-19 management and prevention this fall, reliable resources are needed for connecting public health leaders with the latest information on treatment. HHS's ...
This June marked the 40-year anniversary of the first five cases of what later became known as AIDS reported in CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. Since then, more than 32 million people have died from the disease worldwide and ...
The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the intersections of social determinants of health, such as transportation, education, and housing, and their impact on the health of individuals and communities. As the moratorium on evictions ends in ...
Across the nation, public health agencies have mounted herculean efforts to stem the COVID-19 pandemic while addressing a pre-existing HIV epidemic and an opioid crisis that is serving as a source for many new HIV outbreaks. Tackling these ...
One of the major disruptions to daily life caused by the COVID-19 pandemic was the rapid shift from in-person K-12 education to virtual learning. While necessary for social distancing and slowing the spread of disease, there is a concern ...
Approximately 700 women die annually in the U.S. between 2007-2016 as a result of pregnancy or its complications, according to CDC data. This is one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the developed world. On top of that, there are ...
The executive leaders of the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials and the National Council for Mental Wellbeing take a moment to collectively acknowledge the incredible efforts that public health workers have taken to ...