Each September marks National Preparedness Month. This year, public health emergency preparedness professionals look back on 20 years since the 9/11 attacks—the event that effectively launched the preparedness field—while actively ...
While governments have faced challenges in adopting a Health in All Policies (HiAP) approach to respond to COVID-19, the impact of the public health emergency across sectors such as housing, transportation, and employment has created a ...
States and territories have broad powers to protect public health and safety, including powers to prevent and control the spread of communicable disease typically exercised by state and territorial health departments. This authority is an ...
In the current legislative cycle, there are several policy strategies that support the development and integration of community health workers into the public health workforce, including dedicated federal funding and state laws supporting ...
As many state legislatures seek to expand vaccine exemptions, it’s important to understand the fundamental differences in exemption type and their impact on a community.
SepticSmart Week is an annual opportunity for health agencies at all jurisdictional levels to share educational resources about onsite wastewater treatment system upkeep. This post highlights efforts in North Carolina and Virginia to ...
ASTHO interview with Norman Oliver, MD, MA (alumni-VA) about achieving health equity and optimal health across racial lines.
In this ASTHO webinar, learn how state public health agencies can align with state Medicaid agencies to collaboratively advance the goals of the National Ending the HIV Initiative. Featured guests include the Virginia Department of Medical ...
Dental care and the oral health workforce have also been tremendously impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. In the midst of stay at home orders, nationwide closures, and related employment loss, people have largely put their oral health on ...
Though we’ve made progress on the number of HIV cases in the U.S, tens of thousands of Americans are diagnosed with HIV each year—a disproportionate number being people of color. In 2019, the federal government launched the Ending the HIV ...
In recognition of American Heart Month, this episode focuses on the important role that community health workers (CHWs) play in Virginia’s statewide approach to addressing health disparities and heart disease, in particular.
ASTHO staff identified a range of evidence-supported policies considered by state legislatures that could prevent ACEs. This report synthesizes these research and policy proposals and is intended for public health practitioners and ...
This report highlights lessons learned about how to remain resilient in the face of complex disasters and environmental events, following two listening sessions hosted by ASTHO and the Environmental Council of the States.
February is Heart Month, a time to not only celebrate our love for others but also the organ that pumps us full of life - yet heart disease continues to be the leading cause of death in the U.S. This post is an overview of state ...
The opioid crisis continues to claim the lives of thousands across the United States and has cost the economy billions in health care, mortality, and criminal justice costs. In 2018, it’s estimated that 67,367 people died of overdose, with ...
Conditioning school attendance on student vaccinations is an evidence-based way of maintaining and increasing vaccine coverage. State law establishes school vaccination requirements which apply not only to public schools but often to ...
With data showing the number of the opioid overdose deaths escalated during the COVID-19 pandemic, access to naloxone, a medication that can reverse an opioid overdose, continues to be an important topic for policy makers. The number of ...
On Dec. 3, the International Day of People with Disabilities commemorates disability rights and brings awareness to essential issues for those with disabilities by promoting the “well-being of persons with disabilities in all spheres of ...
An increasing body of research finds racism can have a significant impact across one’s lifespan. Research shows that persistent exposure to racial discrimination may result in premature aging, poor health outcomes, and increased prevalence ...