Friday, January 16, 2009

Calling for action

With D.C. gearing up for next week's inauguration, APHA has released a list of its public health priorities for the new Congress and administration.

These recommendations are part of NPHW efforts to urge our elected leaders to recognize the importance of public health as the foundation for a strong national health system that is able to address the many health challenges facing our nation.

Check them out here and then share your thoughts in the comments. What other legislative asks do you think the public health community should promote?

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1 comment:

J. Baird said...

1. Decrease the medical burden of one person on another. An issue with things like obesity is that the costs of treatment are shared in the community due to the use of public funds. We need to shift all medical care away from public funds so that chronic health issues don't work to impede the progress of the poor and middle classes.

2. Oppose any and all federal spending increases. Inflation (and the associated weakening of the dollar) is a major source of rising medical costs. The bailouts of Bush and Obama are only exacerbating this issue. Thus, more federal spending works against the issue of access by increasing costs.

3. End abstinence only sex-ed. Abstinence only is associated with increases in every kind of risky sex behavior and has put millions of children at risk by denying them the information they'll need later in life. Sensible sex education should be allowed, with schools and states able to decide what they want to teach.