APHA Advocates

Compensate people exposed to radiation

People who were sickened by radiation from nuclear tests in Nevada should receive compensation, APHA told Congress recently.

U.S. weapons tests in Nevada exposed area residents to potentially dangerous radiation

Photo courtesy BWBimages, iStockphoto

In a May 13 letter to members of the House of Representatives, APHA endorsed S. 3853, the Radiation Exposure Compensation Reauthorization Act, which would continue to compensate people who have developed cancer or other chronic diseases related to radiation released by weapons tested in Nevada.

From the 1950s to the early 1990s, the U.S. conducted weapons-related activities, including nuclear tests, in Nye County, about 65 miles northwest of Las Vegas. Studies have found that people in Nevada and other states downwind, such as Arizona, Colorado and Idaho, were exposed to radiation.

The compensation act was originally passed in 1990. The reauthorization, which the Senate passed in March, would expand compensation to those left out of the original act, such as people in neighboring states. Uranium workers harmed by nuclear waste would also be included in the compensation. The act would extend the program five years.

In 1986, APHA members organized a protest at the Nevada Test Site in conjunction with the Association’s Annual Meeting in Las Vegas. About 140 people, including astronomer Carl Sagan, who spoke at the meeting, were arrested.

APHA calls for loan repayment funding

The work of public health professionals contributes to keeping Americans healthy and safe, but the field is losing talented workers and struggling to recruit new ones.

Authorization by Congress of a loan repayment program can help build back the public health workforce, which has struggled to recruit and retain health workers, APHA says. Despite being passed into law, the program has not been fully funded.

Photo by Shaun Anthony Eddy, courtesy iStockphoto

Authorization by Congress of $100 million for the Public Health Workforce Loan Repayment Program would help build back the public health workforce, APHA and other advocates said in a May letter to a House of Representatives appropriations committee. The federal program offers college loan repayments for public health professionals who work at least three years in a local, state or tribal health department. Despite being passed into law, the program has not yet been fully funded by Congress.

To further bolster the workforce, Congress should also fully fund the Bio-Preparedness Workforce Pilot Program, a loan repayment offering for health care professionals in infectious disease and emergency preparedness. The advocates asked Congress for $50 million toward that program.

Financial incentives to improve recruitment and retention are needed to offset dramatic personnel losses over the past decade, the advocates said. Between 2008 and 2019, state and local health departments lost 15% of staff. Tens of thousands of workers need to be hired and retained to maintain public health services.

“Local and state health departments are also our nation’s first line response to public health emergencies,” the advocates said.

“An underinvestment in state and local public health workforce leaves our communities under-prepared to respond to emergencies, including infectious disease outbreaks, environmental hazards and weather-related events.”

The programs could mean that as many as 2,000 public health professionals build careers in local, state and tribal health departments and in underserved communities.

“These commonsense incentives will help ensure our public health and (infectious disease) workforces grow sufficiently to keep our communities safe and healthy in the years to come,” the advocates said.

Firearm prevention research needed now

Funding for firearm violence prevention research must remain a priority for lawmakers, APHA says.

In June, APHA joined other health organizations in urging Congress to provide $35 million for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, $25 million for the National Institutes of Health and $1 million for the National Institute of Justice for public health research into firearm morbidity and mortality prevention.

In the same way that legislation addressing motor vehicle crashes resulted in public health interventions that have saved lives, better policies on firearms can lead to reduced gun-related injuries and deaths, the advocates said. A 2021 report estimated the federal government needs $100 million annually to fully fund the research. But in the fiscal year 2024 budget, Congress provided CDC and NIH with only $12.5 million each.

Across the country, communities are suffering from preventable firearm-related violence, with more than 48,000 deaths in 2022. In 2020, gun violence became the leading cause of death for U.S. children and teens.

To take action for public health, visit www.apha.org/advocacy.

APHA calls on members to ‘speak for health’ in August with legislators

With Congress on recess in August, legislators are back in their communities, often hosting public forums and holding office hours.

APHA members are being called on to use the opportunity to reach out to their elected members of Congress on important public health issues such as childhood nutrition, gun violence and public health funding.

To make outreach easy, the Association provides free talking points, state fact sheets, graphics and other tools designed for advocating on public health. The materials can also be used on social media or to draft and submit op-eds to news outlets. To access the tools, visit www.apha.org/speak-for-health.