News & Insights

On January 21, 2021, the Biden Administration issued a National Strategy for the COVID-19 Response and Pandemic Preparedness. One of the action items in the plan was to establish the COVID-19 Health Equity Task Force to make recommendations on strategies to mitigate health and social inequities due to COVID-19. The Task Force concluded its work in October 2021, issuing a Final Report and Recommendations. The report includes 36 recommendations involving law and policy that provide a framework for improving health outcomes.

Across the country, states and localities are using a variety of strategies to assess the health, equity, and racial impacts of legislative and administrative policies. Recognizing the need for a health equity assessment tool, the Health Equity Network of Ohio recently launched an analytic tool to support implementation of a Health and Equity in All Policies approach in Ohio. In this Q & A, two of the tools’ drafters discuss the opportunities the tools presents to advance health equity in their state.

Cannabis law and policy is evolving at a blistering pace driven largely by state legalization of medical and adult-use cannabis. While cannabis remains illegal under federal law, there are stirrings of change. In this churn of changing state laws public health is faced with myriad complex issues. How do we address social justice in the shadow of the war on drugs?  What policies are effective in preventing youth access? How can the tax revenue generated by cannabis legalization be used to reinvest in communities disproportionately harmed by the war on drugs? What role can local government play in this dynamic environment?  To help public health stakeholders better navigate critical issues like these, the Network is hosting a Summit on September 13th and 14th in Baltimore City, Maryland to explore pressing issues in cannabis law and policy.

The COVID pandemic has brought into sharp focus the crucial nature of data in helping drive decision-making, directing public health interventions, focusing limited resources, and allocating precious grant dollars. The new federal Information Blocking Rule may provide local and state health departments with an additional tool to enhance collection of key public health data and overcome some of the barriers to reporting of data by health care providers and others.

In 2021, nearly 108,000 people in the U.S. died of a drug overdose; around 75 percent of those overdoses involved an opioid, largely driven by the increased presence of synthetic opioids, like fentanyl and fentanyl analogues, in the nation’s illicit drug supply. While many jurisdictions are making moves toward evidence-based harm reduction measures to save lives, others are increasing penalties for those who possess and sell fentanyl.

Big Tobacco has historically targeted youth, the LGBTQ+ community, and African Americans with tailored marketing campaigns for menthol tobacco products. Menthol is a flavor additive that reduces the harshness and irritation of smoking, and enhances the addictive effects of nicotine in the brain. Similarly, it increases the chances that youth who begin smoking will habitually use these products. On April 28 the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) took an important step toward advancing health equity by announcing two proposed rules that will reduce tobacco-related health disparities.

The early days of the coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19) were daunting for patients and providers alike. In-person health care visits were curtailed, and health care providers had to quickly pivot to telehealth services to ensure access to care for patients. However, the shift to telehealth imposed new barriers to care, such as a lack of broadband/unreliable internet, required devices for telehealth services (smart phones, laptops, etc.), and digital illiteracy. Community Care Cooperative, a Massachusetts-based non-profit, Accountable Care Organization, mobilized during the pandemic to deliver telehealth services in the state and is working to identify operational, legal, and policy challenges to virtual care and create a framework for long-term sustainability of telehealth.

Preserving the ability of states and local governments to regulate the sale of tobacco, especially flavored tobacco which is popular with youth, is crucial for protecting public health. In September 2019, Los Angeles County adopted an ordinance banning the sale of all flavored tobacco products, which was subsequently challenged in court by R.J. Reynolds which claimed the ordinance was preempted by the Tobacco Control Act (TCA). The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit recently upheld the ordinance, concluding that the TCA does not preempt state and local governments from banning the sale of flavored tobacco.

Movement, safe play space, and connection with nature are vital to a healthy life and should be equally accessible to all. In many urban areas however, young people of color have limited access to outdoor spaces. In addition, public spaces have been designed to intentionally keep out youth with behavior-excluding elements in public features, such as anti-skateboard metal brackets and no loitering policies. Additionally, communities often fail to take youth into consideration when designing physical space and setting zoning restrictions. Public health professionals must engage communities and policymakers to secure policies and community design that improve rather than diminish activity and socializing by youth.

Overview In most U.S. jurisdictions, legal protections for tenants include the right to habitable conditions, meaning that landlords are required to maintain…

National Minority Health Month was observed in April — which marked its 20th year — to emphasize and highlight initiatives aimed at improving health outcomes for racial and ethnic minority groups. This year, severe public health threats including the Covid-19 pandemic, opioid epidemic, high rates of substance abuse, and ongoing housing crises highlight the underlying disparities in U.S. health care and other policies, emphasizing the need to focus on these issues to achieve the best health outcomes for all.

The COVID 19 Public Health Emergency (PHE) has been in effect since January 28, 2020. The original declaration lasted 90 days and has been extended repeatedly – but it won’t last forever. And the end of the PHE is going to cause serious upheaval in state Medicaid programs. The federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services has been issuing guidance and toolkits to help states as they return to pre-pandemic enrollment and operations.