March 2008

NACCHO Leaders Advocate for Local Public Health on Capitol Hill

As part of NACCHO's 2008 Leadership Conference, NACCHO's board members took the local public health message to their elected officials on Capitol Hill. NACCHO members discussed the role of public health in the health reform debate, the importance of adequate funding to support local public health, and the need to address workforce shortages.

NACCHO's President, Bobby Pestronk, and Vice President, Bruce Dart, met with staff from the House and Senate Appropriations Committees and the House Energy and Commerce Committee to advocate for local public health needs. NACCHO City Forum Chair Epi Bodhi and NACCHO staff met with staff from the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee.

Your colleagues have sent more than 100 messages to Congress this year regarding public health funding through NACCHO's Legislative Action Center. This resource offers you action alerts, sample letters, and contact information for elected officials as well as summaries of legislation that NACCHO has endorsed. The Legislative Action Center can be found at http://capwiz.com/naccho/home/.

NACCHO Releases Policy Statement on Health System Reform

On March 6, NACCHO's Board of Directors approved a policy statement on creating a United States health system for the 21st century.

This policy statement addresses the issue of healthcare reform and the need to include prevention as part of any health reform proposal. The policy states, "NACCHO believes that the United States should become the healthiest nation in the world. We are committed to building a 21st-century United States health system that results in optimal health for all. Such a system will place its highest priority on prevention, provide access to health care for every person, eliminate inequities in health status, and protect people and communities from emerging health threats." The full policy statement is available at www.naccho.org/advocacy/Resolutions/access.cfm.

NACCHO is working with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials to promote action to make the United States the healthiest nation in the world. The theme for the ASTHO-NACCHO 2008 Joint Conference, to be held Sept. 9–12, is "Becoming the Healthiest Nation in a Healthier World."

Legislation Allowing FDA to Regulate Tobacco Advances

On March 11, the House Energy and Commerce Health Subcommittee passed the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act (HR 1108). This bill gives the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) the authority to regulate manufacturing, marketing, labeling, distribution, and sale of tobacco products. FDA regulation would have important public health benefits. NACCHO has worked with the Partners for Effective Tobacco Policy coalition to advocate for this legislation for many years. The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee passed the Senate version of the bill last year and the full Senate may vote on the bill this spring.

Public Health Preparedness Workforce Development Act Introduced

Representative Doris Matsui (D-CA) has introduced the Public Health Preparedness Workforce Development Act (HR 5496). This is a companion bill to S. 1882, introduced last year by Senators Hagel (R-NE) and Durbin (D-IL). This bill would provide scholarships and loan repayment to encourage individuals to enter careers in public health preparedness. The legislation would authorize $35 million per year for student scholarships and $195 million per year for loan repayments. The bill would also support mid-career training for public health professionals to join the preparedness or biodefense workforce. Once the bill is passed and signed into law, appropriations will have to be passed through the regular budgeting process to fund these programs.

NACCHO is currently working with Congresswoman Matsui to increase the number of co-sponsors for the bill. There is an action alert on NACCHO's Web site that provides a sample letter you can use to encourage your Representative to become a co-sponsor. For more information, please visit http://capwiz.com/naccho/issues/alert/?alertid=11131906