Kathleen Hoke

Women are disproportionately affected by food insecurity, and these disparities are even more pronounced during pregnancy, with some studies estimating that one in five pregnant people face food insecurity. There is growing interest in positioning food insecurity as a health issue requiring a health care response. Federal and state programs that center "food as medicine" show promise in addressing the negative health outcomes that can result from food insecurity, improving both maternal and child health outcomes.

Tattoos have become increasingly popular across many demographics. State and local laws should be in place to ensure sanitary conditions in tattoo businesses and proper training of artists. This resource outlines the National Environmental Health Association Model Code related to tattoos, which states and local governments can use as a guideline for developing effective regulations.

With more than 55 million people in the U.S. who are currently 65 or older (a number that is expected to continue to increase for decades), facilitating healthy aging should be a public health priority. There are Federal and State initiatives that can serve as a blueprint for creating programs and collaborations that improve older adult health.

The Network seeks to support local, state, and tribal governments, health departments, community-based groups or organizations, nonprofits, professional associations, health care systems and providers, and others in their efforts to eliminate deep, systemic, and racially driven inequities in public health. Join us for a webinar outlining our recently released Legal and Policy Assistance to Address Racial Health Equity call for applications (RHE CFA) to support work on racial health equity. We are seeking applicants developing or working on a specific issue that prioritizes racial equity that would benefit from legal and policy technical assistance. We can assist with work that is at any stage of development.

Since its inception, graduated driver licensing (GDL) has focused on minimizing the prevalence of motor vehicle crashes caused by new drivers, reducing related injuries and property damage. Some states have made another important addition to their driver education program—the impact of vehicle emissions on air quality.

Thanks to recent action by the Department of Agriculture, school lunches will become more nutritious. As the new federal standards roll out, states can support students’ health by increasing access to free school breakfast and lunch. Eight states have passed Health School Meals for All policies, providing comprehensive access to free breakfast and lunch to all students, regardless of income.

Attend this webinar to learn about the law and policy levers that can improve maternal health outcomes and increase access to reproductive health care, with concrete examples that can be implemented in any jurisdiction, regardless of laws regulating abortion care. This webinar will focus on state laws regulating access to direct-entry midwives and doulas and how improved access supports maternal health. The webinar will also describe an innovative state law designed to train and educate physician assistants and nurse practitioners who are permitted to provide sexual and reproductive health care.

Financial capability (financial literacy coupled with access to economic opportunity) has a positive, long-term effect on health. However, many people living in the margins financially are not adequately equipped with financial education and training to make the most of their employment or other financial resources. Over the past decade, states have increasingly adopted legislation requiring students in public schools to pass personal finance courses in order to graduate high school.

With the recission of the federal declaration of public health emergency, tenants lost some protections from the CARES Act and related federal policies. Proposals in the Biden Administration’s Blueprint for a Renters Bill of Rights provides avenues to support tenants in housing and project based rental assistance and expands those protections as negotiated measures between Freddie Mac and the landlord community.

The Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization eviscerated 50 years of precedent and constitutional rights to abortion. States have since adopted widely divergent reproductive health care access policies, illustrating serious legal questions remaining post-Roe. Attend this webinar for the latest information on litigation in state courts regarding reproductive health care access through state constitutions and statutes; an update on how states are protecting reproductive health records through data privacy laws; and how local health departments are serving their communities in the post-Roe landscape.

The Biden Administration’s Blueprint for a Renters Bill of Rights (Blueprint) was introduced on January 25, 2023 to drive action at the federal, state, and local levels to strengthen tenant protections and housing affordability. One of the principles outlined in the Blueprint is that governmental bodies should do all they can to enforce fair housing laws, protect renters from unlawful discrimination, and ensure renters know their legal rights.

The Biden Administration’s Blueprint for a Renters Bill of Rights (Blueprint) was introduced on January 25, 2023 to drive action at the federal, state, and local levels to strengthen tenant protections and housing affordability. One of the principles outlined in the Blueprint is that renters should have clear and fair leases, with defined rental terms, rights, and responsibilities written in simple and clear language.