PUBLIC HEALTH WEEKLY
Dec. 22, 2016
NEWS
  • ASTHO Wishes Readers a Happy Holiday! This is the last Public Health Weekly of 2016. We will resume our regular publishing schedule on Jan. 5. 
  • Gov. Larry Hogan appoints Dennis Schrader to lead the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.
  • The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and Manatt Health released an issue brief highlighting critical questions for states to consider as Congress and the incoming administration debate repealing the ACA. 
  • Trust for America’s Health's new report scores states on 10 key indicators of public health preparedness.
  • New CDC report identifies the drugs most frequently involved in overdose deaths. 
  • CDC will award nearly $184 million in funding to states, territories, local jurisdictions, and universities to support efforts to protect Americans from Zika. 

HEALTH POLICY UPDATE
ASTHO tracked legislation across the 48 jurisdictions that held legislative sessions in 2016 to identify the actions policymakers are taking to protect public health, including measures that address the availability of opioids, prescription drug monitoring programs, tobacco taxes, electronic nicotine devices, food safety, and medical marijuana regulations. The 2016 State Legislative Summary summarizes the bills that ASTHO tracked, sharing information on trends and emerging issues. 

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DID YOU KNOW?
Only 8% of people are successful in keeping their resolutions. Make public health part of your new year’s resolution for 2017! 
MEMBER
SPOTLIGHT
Jerome Adams, MD, is commissioner of the Indiana State Department of Health. In this role he oversees the public health protection and laboratory services, health and human services, healthcare quality and regulatory, and tobacco prevention and cessation commissions.
 
ASTHO RESOURCES
FROM THE BLOG

States Implement Policy Measures in 2016 to Address Opioid Misuse

Opioid overdose deaths continue to rise in the United States. According to CDC, 91 Americans die every day from an opioid overdose. This year, legislatures focused on finding effective solutions to this ongoing epidemic by adopting statutory and regulatory limits on opioid prescriptions and expanding safe syringe access programs.

© 2016 ASSOCIATION OF STATE AND TERRITORIAL HEALTH OFFICIALS