State Category: Alaska

TFAH Celebrates Older Americans Month: Powered by Connection

In his presidential proclamation designating May as Older Americans’ Month, President Joe Biden said “Older Americans are the backbone of our Nation. They have built the foundation that we all stand upon today”.

This annual celebration, first declared in 1963, provides the opportunity to not only recognize older Americans’ contributions to our society, but also to highlight challenges and reaffirm our commitment to serving older adults across the country.

This year’s theme, “Powered by Connection,” helps us focus on the profound impact that meaningful connections have on everyone’s well-being and health, including older adults. The  U.S. Surgeon General’s 2023 Advisory on the Healing Effects of Social Connection and Community underscores the importance of this engagement. While social isolation can have the same effect as smoking 15 cigarettes a day, a study in Scientific American found that strong social connections can boost a person’s lifespan by 50 percent!

The public health sector is leading in many states and communities to enhance connectedness among older adults, recognizing the value of engagement for people’s health and well-being. Many organizations are leading efforts to build inclusive neighborhoods and to include policies for mitigating social isolation into state and community health improvement plans. Public health agencies are partnering with area agencies on aging, YMCAs, or other community-based organizations to improve access to facilities and programs that provide services to older adults, particularly those in underserved communities. Some are leading efforts to pilot and expand intergenerational programs, connecting older people with younger individuals who provide training on technology, for example. Local health departments are partnering with parks and recreation, transportation, and housing colleagues to build inclusive public spaces and ensure they have adequate lighting, space, and other features to bolster safety for older adults and their families.

Trust for America’s Health’s Age-Friendly Public Health Systems 6Cs Framework offers a practical guide for public health actions to improve social connectedness:

  • Creating and leading changes in social isolation and loneliness among older adults by improving awareness of the health implications and motivating existing older adult systems and infrastructures to address social isolation.
  • Connecting multi-sector partners to strengthen ties between healthcare systems and community-based networks and resources addressing older adult social isolation and loneliness.
  • Collecting data and developing a more robust evidence base on the implications and importance of addressing social isolation.
  • Coordinating existing programs for older adults to improve screening, access and service delivery to older adults and strengthen ongoing education and training on social isolation.
  • Communicating how to translate current research into healthcare practices to support the reduction of social isolation among older adults.
  • Complementing existing aging services to reach older adults where they are to reduce social isolation.

Social engagement is not just about having someone to chat with. It’s about the transformative potential of community engagement in enhancing mental, physical, and emotional well-being. By recognizing and nurturing the role that connectedness plays, we can mitigate issues like loneliness, ultimately promoting health across the life span for all Americans.

TFAH Celebrates National Public Health Week

April 1-7, 2024 is National Public Health Week. This year’s theme is Protecting, Connecting and Thriving: We Are All Public Health and TFAH is proud to celebrate and recognize all of the individuals, organizations, and agencies that work to protect health, advance equity, and promote well-being in communities nationwide.

Public health workers are on the front lines helping communities prevent chronic diseases and substance misuse, defending against disease outbreaks, protecting our water supply, and preparing for and responding to natural and human-caused disasters. Their work is constant and critically important to improving and protecting the health and safety of all communities.

Examples of the contributions of the public health system to advancing Americans’ health are many, including:

  • Increasing life expectancy – Americans’ life expectancy steadily increased during the 20th century and through 2009 the first decade of the 21st century, was flat between 2010 and 2018 the next decade, and declined during the COVID-19 pandemic. The latest available data, for 2022, showed a slight rebound in the life expectancy trendline.
  • Delivering vaccines – the 20th and beginning of the 21st centuries saw substantial decreases in vaccine preventable diseases such as measles and polio thanks in part to public health programs to ensure vaccine access, particularly in underserved communities.
  • Promoting maternal and infant health – programs to support pregnant people have created improved access to prenatal, post-partum, and infant healthcare, but more work needs to be done to address racial and ethnic disparities in maternal and postpartum health outcomes.
  • Helping people who smoke quit – the initial phase of the Centers for Disease Control’s Tips from Former Smokers campaign (2012 – 2018) helped more than one million people successfully stop smoking, which has prevented an estimated 129,000 early deaths and saved approximately $7.3 billion in smoking-related healthcare costs.
  • Protecting health during extreme heat – extreme heat threatens the public’s health. Several U.S. jurisdictions have heat response plans, and others are working on creating such plans. Heat response plans outline actions to mitigate the impact of the increasing number and intensity of heatwaves.

“Public health practitioners work tirelessly to prevent disease, prepare for and respond to disasters, address health disparities, and create healthy communities. This vital work deserves support and requires investment to fully fund the public health infrastructure and its workforce,” said Dr. J. Nadine Gracia, M.D. MSCE, President and CEO of Trust for America’s Health.

Most of the money spent on healthcare in the U.S. goes toward preventable illnesses and injuries. Increased and sustained funding for public health would be an investment in prevention and would help to reduce healthcare spending over time. TFAH has called for $4.5 billion annually to adequately fund public health infrastructure across the country.  As the White House and Congress work on FY 2025 appropriations, lawmakers should support the full range of work the CDC and health departments do every day to keep communities safe and healthy.

A different public health theme is highlighted each day during National Public Health Week. Visit the American Public Health Association and to access information and resources on each topic.

The Affordable Care Act at 14: Preserve the Progress

This March marks the 14th anniversary of the enactment of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Its passage was the most significant advancement of health policy since the establishment of Medicare and Medicaid in the 1960s and made healthcare accessible and affordable for millions more Americans.  Despite efforts to repeal and restrict the ACA, the progress the legislation has made toward health equity and improving public health prevention is significant and lifesaving. It must be preserved.

The ACA was signed into law in March 2010 during the 110th Congress. Some of the major provisions of the legislation include the creation of a public marketplace for health insurance, expansion of Medicaid eligibility to many adults with low incomes, coverage of recommended preventive services, and the establishment of the Prevention and Public Health Fund.

In the decade leading up to the ACA’s passage, the percentage of people without health insurance steadily increased, reaching over 16 percent of all U.S. residents in 2010, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Preventive services such as mammograms and other cancer screenings, diabetes screenings, and vaccinations were a costly expense and not easily accessible for a significant number of Americans.

Health insurance enrollment has soared in the years since the Affordable Care Act became law. Forty states and D.C. have expanded Medicaid. As a result, many of those states saw a significant decrease in the share of people without insurance. Nationally, the percentage of uninsured adults between 18-65 steadily decreased to 12.2 percent in 2022, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Uninsurance rates also dropped significantly for Black, Latino, and Asian Americans, and for households with lower-incomes.

Medicaid expansion has had significant benefits related to greater health insurance coverage. Mortality rates declined in states that expanded Medicaid eligibility to more adults with low incomes, according to a 2021 study (using data from before COVID-19 was declared a public health emergency). Expansion has contributed to healthcare affordability, access and utilization of care, financial security, and positive impacts on state economies.

Additionally, the ACA ensured access to vital preventive care and screenings without a copay. Prior to the ACA, many health plans failed to cover preventive services, and those that did often required individuals to pay a share of the costs. Even small out-of-pocket payments have been shown to deter people from accessing preventive services, particularly people with lower incomes.

The creation of the Prevention and Public Health Fund (PPHF) has been an important tool for improving health outcomes and reducing health expenditures. To date, PPHF has provided over $12 billion to states and territories to expand access to immunizations, strengthen detection of diseases, and prevent chronic diseases. One program supported by PPHF, the Tips from Former Smokers Campaign, has helped one million smokers quit for good, preventing an estimated 129,000 early deaths.

Yet, the ACA’s progress continues to be at risk.

Ten states have yet to expand Medicaid eligibility. And the current unwinding of continuous Medicaid enrollment that was authorized during the COVID-19 public health emergency has left many individuals and families without health coverage.

Litigation currently moving through the courts threatens access to preventive services. TFAH joined other public health organizations and scholars in an amicus brief describing the potential harms of overturning ACA’s preventive services coverage requirements. Should the courts overturn part or all of this important protection, millions of Americans could lose access to these life-saving services.

An additional threat to the ACA’s impact is the use of monies that should be directed to the Prevention and Public Health Fund to other legislation or priorities. To date, nearly $13 billion has been redirected in this manner. Most recently, the proposed costs in the Protecting Health Care for All Patients Act of 2023 were offset by taking more than $1 billion from PPHF. TFAH was joined by more than 100 organizations in a letter opposing these cuts.

TFAH will continue to urge Congress to restore funding for the Prevention and Public Health Fund and protect access to preventive services.

The ACA is a critical catalyst toward the goal of ensuring the opportunity for optimal health for everyone. It has unlocked access to healthcare including preventive services for so many in this country, including those at the highest risk of poor health. We can’t afford to turn back.

New Report Measures States’ Emergency Preparedness and Recommends Policy Actions to Strengthen the Nation’s Public Health System and Emergency Preparedness

Special Section Examines Health Impacts of Extreme Heat and the Disproportionate Risks for Certain Population Groups

(Washington, DC – March 14, 2024) – Ready or Not 2024: Protecting the Public’s Health from Diseases, Disasters, and Bioterrorism, released today by Trust for America’s Health, identifies key gaps in national and state preparedness to protect residents’ health during emergencies and makes recommendations to strengthen the nation’s public health system and improve emergency readiness.

As the nation experiences an increasing number of infectious disease outbreaks and extreme weather events, the report found that while emergency preparedness has improved in some areas, policymakers not heeding the lessons of past emergencies, funding cuts, and health misinformation are putting decades of progress in public health preparedness at risk.

Based on nine indicators, the report tiers states, and the District of Columbia, into three readiness levels: high, middle, and low. This year’s report placed 21 states and DC in the high-performance tier, 13 states in the middle-performance tier, and 16 states in the low-performance tier.

High Tier – 21 states & DC

AL, AZ, CO, CT, DC, FL, GA, KS, MA, ME, MS, NC, NE, NJ, OH, PA, RI, SC, TN, VA, VT, WA

Middle Tier – 13 states

AR, DE, IA, ID, IL, MD, MO, MT, NH, NM, OK, UT, WI

Low Tier – 16 states

AK, CA, HI, IN, KY, LA, MI, MN, ND, NV, NY, OR, SD, TX, WV, WY

The report is designed to give policymakers actionable data and benchmarks to improve their jurisdiction’s readiness through new and sustained investment in public health infrastructure, modern data systems, a larger and more diverse public health workforce, and collaboration between public health and healthcare systems, and both systems’ ability to surge capacity in response to emergencies. Additional areas of responsibility for the public health system are enhancing vaccine access and monitoring municipal water systems safety.

“This report underscores the need for comprehensive investment in public health infrastructure and preparedness and highlights the importance of addressing the disproportionate effects of underinvestment in public health on communities of color and other groups that have been underserved or marginalized,” said Dr. J. Nadine Gracia, President and CEO of Trust for America’s Health. “Recent public health emergencies, from wildfires to infectious disease outbreaks, not only reveal the imperative for a modernized public health system they also highlight the intrinsic link between the overall health of a community and its ability to be resilient during an emergency. Focusing on eliminating health disparities, advancing health equity, and stemming the rise in chronic diseases is essential for enhancing the nation’s emergency preparedness.”

The report’s special section discusses the increasing health risks from extreme heat, including for particular population groups: people who live in under-resourced communities, people living in urban heat islands or without air conditioning, people who work outdoors, people with chronic diseases, pregnant individuals, infants, children, and older adults. In 2022, more people died in the U.S. due to extreme heat than from any other single type of weather event.

The report’s findings showed both areas of strength in the nation’s health emergency preparedness and areas that need attention.

Areas of strong performance include:

  • A majority of states have made preparations to expand healthcare and public health laboratory capacity in an emergency. As of the end of 2023, 39 states participate in the Nurse Licensure Compact, which helps facilitate emergency response efforts by allowing nurses to work in multiple member states, both in person and via telehealth, without the need for additional state licenses. Additionally, 46 states and the District of Columbia have written plans for the expansion of public health laboratory services during health emergencies.
  • Most states (43) and the District of Columbia are accredited in the areas of public health or emergency management, with many accredited in both.
  • A majority of states (at least 37) and the District of Columbia either maintained or increased their public health funding during fiscal year 2023. State investment in public health is particularly important because most federal funding in response to the COVID-19 pandemic was temporary, one-time funding.

Areas that need attention include:

  • Too few people are vaccinated against seasonal flu. During the 2022-2023 flu season, only 49 percent of the population (ages 6 months and older) was vaccinated against the flu, well short of the 70 percent goal established by Healthy People 2030. There is concern among public health experts that misinformation about the COVID-19 vaccine could be impacting the uptake of other vaccines.
  • On average, only 25 percent of acute care hospitals in states earned a top-quality patient safety grade in fall 2023. Hospital safety scores measure performance on issues such as healthcare-associated infection rates, intensive-care capacity, and an overall culture of error prevention – all critical for performing at their best during health emergencies.
  • On average, only 55 percent of U.S. workers used paid time off during the period from March 2018 to March 2023. Access to paid time off is an important readiness measure because workers who go to work sick risk spreading infections in the workforce and throughout the community.

Policy action is needed:

The report contains recommendations for policy actions across both public and private sectors that would create stronger public health preparedness, including:

  • Congress should enhance and modernize public health infrastructure by investing $4.5 billion per year to support foundational public health capabilities at the federal, state, tribal, local, and territorial levels, including investments in data systems and the public health workforce.
  • Congress should empower CDC to collect public health data in a timely and coordinated manner, and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and all jurisdictions should ensure timely, complete, and disaggregated data collection and reporting. Together, these will enable faster and more effective detection and response to health emergencies.
  • Policymakers should prioritize rebuilding trust in public health agencies and leaders. Public health policy decisions should always be based on the best available science and free from political considerations, and federal agencies should be equipped to provide timely and clear public health guidance.
  • Congress should provide at least $1.1 billion per year to support vaccine infrastructure and equitable delivery of vaccines. States should minimize vaccine exemptions for schoolchildren, and healthcare facilities should increase vaccination rates among healthcare workers.
  • Congress should significantly increase investments in public health initiatives to prevent, detect, and contain antimicrobial resistance.
  • Congress and states should provide job-protected paid leave to contain the spread of outbreaks and protect health.
  • Congress should provide significant funding for medical countermeasures and should work with the private sector to plan for their distribution and dispensing when needed.
  • Congress, HHS, and healthcare leaders should strengthen healthcare readiness and recovery, and state and local emergency planners should work with the healthcare sector to integrate healthcare delivery into emergency preparedness and response.
  • Congress should increase investments in programs that identify and mitigate the health impacts of climate change, environmental hazards, and extreme weather.

Read the report

Trust for America’s Health is a nonprofit, nonpartisan public health policy, research, and advocacy organization that promotes optimal health for every person and community and makes the prevention of illness and injury a national priority.

 

Nutrition Support Programs are Vital to Preventing Food and Nutrition Insecurity and Reducing Chronic Disease – Congress Must Act to Support Them

As of early November 2023, draft appropriation bills by both the House of Representatives and the Senate do not adequately fund the WIC nutrition support program, threatening to break a nearly 30-year, bipartisan commitment to ensure all participants can access the program without waitlists.

(Washington, DC – 11/20/23) – Access to nutritious food is critical to preventing many chronic diseases and is particularly important to keep young children on track with their growth and developmental needs. In 2022, an estimated 12.8 percent of U.S. households experienced food and or nutrition insecurity sometime during the year.
As Trust for America’s Health’s (TFAH) State of Obesity report series has demonstrated, food insecurity is a risk factor for obesity and other nutrition-related chronic diseases. Progress on addressing these critical public health issues is in jeopardy if Congress does not provide funding for federal nutrition support programs during the current fiscal year.
One of the key federal nutrition programs supporting the specific nutritional needs of young children, infants, and birthing people is the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children, or WIC. Created in 1972, the WIC program is a short-term, public health intervention program designed to strengthen lifetime nutrition and health behaviors within households with low-incomes. The WIC program provides nutrition benefits tailored to support a young child’s development. Over time, the program, including its food packages, has aligned with new science about the key nutrients infants and children need. These changes have had a significant impact. Studies show that the 2007 benefit update helped improve beneficiaries’ diets and decreased rates of obesity among enrolled toddlers ages 2-4.

The WIC program also adapted to challenges created by the COVID-19 pandemic by implementing new flexibilities, such as allowing WIC agencies to remotely load benefits cards. In 2021, Congress also increased the monthly benefit available to families to purchase more fruits and vegetables from $9 to $26 for children, and from $11 to $47 for pregnant and postpartum participants. These changes modernized the program and in turn increased participation; important because WIC has long had lower participation rates in comparison to the number of eligible families.

Today, nearly seven million parents and children under five years old depend on the WIC program, and participation is expected to grow due to increased program flexibilities. To keep up with increased demand, additional program funding is needed. As of early November 2023, draft appropriation bills by both the House of Representatives and the Senate do not adequately fund the WIC program, which threatens to break a nearly 30-year, bipartisan commitment to ensure all participants can access WIC without waitlists. Increasing food costs, make action to grow the WIC program critically important as families are struggling to afford healthy meals and may be forced to turn to cheaper but less nutritious alternatives.

Critical public health programs like WIC not only provide nutritious foods to families in the short term, but also help prevent diet-related diseases. Trust for America’s Health urges Congress to increase funding in the Fiscal Year (FY) 2024 budget for the WIC program to ensure pregnant and postpartum birthing people and their young children have the nutrition they need to enjoy good

The State of Obesity: Creating Pathways to a Healthier America Livestream Event

(Washington, DC – October 18, 2023) – On October 11, 2023, Trust for America’s Health hosted an in-person and livestream event recognizing the 20th anniversary of its State of Obesity: Better Policies for a Healthier America report at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C.  The two-hour event featured White House and federal officials discussing the Biden Administration’s priorities for improving nutrition and health including its National Strategy on Hunger, Nutrition, and Health. In addition, senior federal agency officials discussed a whole-of-government approach to advance transformative policies and programs designed to address increasing rates of diet-related diseases and improve the health of the nation.

Another highlight of the event was a panel featuring community leaders and medical experts discussing effective community level obesity prevention programs and innovative approaches to create sustainable change to promote health.

Four-time track and field Olympian and American record holder Chaunte Lowe closed the program discussing the role that sports can play in promoting health and well-being. Ms. Lowe is a member of the President’s Council on Sports, Fitness, and Nutrition.

Event speakers were:

  • Will McIntee, Senior Advisor for Public Engagement, The White House
  • James “Jim” Jones, Deputy Commissioner for Human Foods, U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
  • Caree Cotwright, PhD, RDN, Director of Nutrition Security and Health Equity, U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)
  • Ruth Petersen, M.D., MPH, Director, Division of Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Obesity (DNPAO), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
  • Jamila Freightman, CDC High Obesity Program Manager, Louisiana State University AgCenter Healthy Communities Program School of Nutrition and Food Sciences
  • Randy Williams, Co-Founder/Vice President of the Robinson/Williams Restoration of Hope Community Center, Bastrop, Louisiana
  • Kofi Essel, M.D., MPH, FAAP, Food as Medicine Program Director, Elevance Health
  • Chaunte Lowe, 4-time Olympian, American Record Holder, and Council Member, President’s Council on Sports, Fitness, and Nutrition

TFAH President and CEO Dr. J. Nadine Gracia and TFAH Executive Vice President Dr. Tekisha Dwan Everette moderated the event. TFAH Chief Operating Officer Stacy Molander served as the event emcee.

 

TFAH Celebrates Public Health Contributions of Hispanic & Latino People During Hispanic Heritage Month

In honor of Hispanic Heritage Month 2023, TFAH is highlighting the careers of a select number of people of Hispanic and Latino/Latina descent who have made important contributions to the field of public health.

Carlos Juan Finlay, M.D. (1833 – 1915)
Dr. Carlos Juan Finlay was an epidemiologist and a physician and a pioneer in yellow fever research. He discovered that yellow fever was a vector-borne disease from mosquitoes. As one of the most revered Cuban doctors and scientists, Finlay was nominated seven times for the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. In 1928, in his honor, Cuba created the National Order of Merit Carlos Finlay as the highest recognition for contributions in healthcare and medicine.

José Celso Barbosa, M.D. (1857 – 1921)
Dr. José Celso Barbosa was the first Puerto Rican and person of African descent to earn an M.D. in the U.S. As a physician and politician, he was supportive of healthcare and fought against racism. After being denied admittance to Columbia University because of his race and ethnicity, he attended and graduated from the University of Michigan Medical School as valedictorian in 1880. He also worked closely with the Red Cross during the Spanish-American War.

César Milstein (1927 – 2002)
César Milstein was a biochemist who was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1975 and awarded the Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine in 1984. He advanced technology related to monoclonal antibodies that is still relevant to protect against viruses and pathogens. Learn more about César Milstein here.

Helen Rodríguez-Trías (1929 – 2001)
Dr. Helen Rodríguez-Trías was a pediatrician and women’s rights advocate and in 1993 became the first Latina president of the American Public Health Association. In 2001, Dr. Rodriguez-Trias was a Presidential Citizens Medal recipient and helped create federal guidelines for consent to medical procedures in response to involuntary sterilization. She also established the first newborn care center in Puerto Rico. Learn more about Dr. Rodríguez-Trías here.

Antonia Novello, M.D. (1944 – present)
Dr. Antonia Novello was appointed the 14th United States Surgeon General in 1990. She was the first Hispanic and first woman to serve in that position. She began her career as a pediatric nephrologist then shifted towards the field of public health. Dr. Novello made many contributions at the National Institutes of Health, including in the areas of pediatrics and AIDS research. Dr. Novello was elected to the National Academy of Medicine in 2000. Learn more about Dr. Novello here.

Jane Delgado, Ph.D. (1953 – present)
Dr. Jane Delgado is a psychologist and graduate of NYU and SUNY Stony Brook. She is the current and first woman president and CEO of the National Alliance for Hispanic Health and contributed to the 1985 Landmark Report of the Secretary’s Task Force on Black & Minority Health aka The Heckler Report. Dr. Delgado has also authored many books on health, including the groundbreaking Salud: The Latina Guide to Total Health. Learn more about Dr. Delgado here.

Omar Estrada
Omar Estrada is a University of Colorado graduate who works with the Colorado Department of Education to improve access to mental and physical health services for Colorado’s youth. Estrada was recognized by the de Beaumont Foundation’s 40 Under 40 in Public Health for 2023.

Bamby Salcedo
Bamby Salcedo is the President and CEO of the TransLatin@ Coalition. She is a prominent LGBTQ+ and human rights activist and helped develop the blueprint on providing competent healthcare services for transgender people and LGBT people in the U.S., Latin America, and the Caribbean. Salcedo also helped create the Center for Violence Prevention and Transgender Wellness in Los Angeles. Learn more about Bamby Salcedo here.