The following are brief descriptions of the 12 policy statements adopted by the Governing Council at APHA’s 2018 Annual Meeting and Expo in San Diego. For more information, email policy{at}apha.org.
Disclaimer: These descriptions are not comprehensive and do not include every point, statement or conclusion presented in the policy statements. For the full policy statements, posted in early 2019, visit www.apha.org/policies-and-advocacy.
20181 Reducing global child mortality rates — Noting that oral rehydration salts and zinc treatment can prevent many childhood diarrheal deaths, calls on federal officials to appoint a U.S. global “children’s champion” charged with coordinating U.S. activities to reduce diarrhea-related mortality. Encourages U.S. global health programs to fund and support improvements to the supply of oral rehydration salts and zinc, innovations in home-based treatment and training for local health providers.
20182 Addressing health impacts of hydraulic fracking — Because fracking poses a range of known and unknown risks to health and the environment, recommends that such unconventional oil and gas development cease and that a strategic phase-out of existing development be encouraged where possible. Calls for policies that explicitly compare the economic and public health trade-offs of fracking and that require environmental impact assessments. Encourages federal health officials to establish an industry-wide worker health registry.
20183 Ensuring a healthy energy future — As communities move away from fossil fuels, calls on stakeholders to monitor, evaluate and support effective strategies to transition to healthier, more efficient energy supplies. Calls on officials to suspend new coal-fired power plants. Urges Congress to set fuel economy and emissions standards for vehicles, and urges car manufacturers to phase out fossil fuel-dependent vehicles. Encourages federal officials to develop energy efficiency standards for homes and commercial buildings.
Members of the Governing Council use electronic devices to cast their votes during APHA’s 2018 Annual Meeting and Expo.
Photo by Michele Late
20184 Reducing gun-related suicides — With guns involved in more than half of U.S. suicide deaths, calls on advocates to promote guidelines for mental health providers on screening for guns in the home. Urges public health agencies to collaborate with public safety and mental health agencies to increase the availability of temporary gun storage outside the home. Calls on public health agencies to partner with gun owners and suicide prevention professionals to advocate for research funding.
20185 Understanding, treating violence as a public health issue — With national data showing an increase in violent deaths, calls on health departments to collect, analyze and report data on violence, including details on how violence impacts historically marginalized communities. Encourages community health programs to start programs that detect and interrupt the transmission of violence using professionally trained workers. Calls on federal, state and local governments to invest in public health approaches to violence prevention.
20186 Regulating electronic nicotine delivery products — With little known about the long-term safety of electronic nicotine delivery systems, calls on the Consumer Product Safety Commission to add nicotine to its list of substances covered by regulations and to require special packaging and warning labels. Calls on Congress to amend the Prevent All Cigarette Trafficking Act to include electronic nicotine delivery systems. Encourages federal agencies to fund research on the short- and long-term health effects of such products.
20187 Preventing tuberculosis among health workers — With health care workers at high risk of tuberculosis, urges officials to implement policies that strengthen workplace health and safety programs. Calls for workers’ compensation programs that provide adequate tuberculosis treatment and counseling, paid leave and death benefits. Recommends workplace programs that have rigorous respiratory protection components, improve exposure control efforts inside hospitals, and provide counseling to help workers cope with the side effects of tuberculosis treatment.
20188 Advancing the health of refugees — Knowing that refugees face significant health challenges, calls on the U.S. government to cooperate with the international community in efforts to prevent conflict and to reaffirm the New York Declaration for Refugees and Migrants. Encourages U.S. officials to work with state and local partners to coordinate housing, educational and health needs among refugees. Calls on the U.S. government to help ensure safe passage for refugees.
20189 Achieving health equity in the U.S. — With research documenting clear health disparities, particularly among racial and ethnic minority groups, calls on federal officials to fully fund the Affordable Care Act, the National Prevention Strategy and Implementation Plan, and the National Partnership for Action to End Health Disparities. Calls for implementing evidence-based toolkits that communities can use to reach vulnerable populations. Calls on officials to support social policies to improve education, income, housing, jobs and transportation.
Members of APHA’s Governing Council weighed in on many issues in San Diego, approving 12 new policy statements.
Photo by Michele Late
201810 Supporting global food security — With hunger still a daily challenge for more than 815 million people worldwide, calls on U.S. leaders to ensure adequate funding for U.S. Agency for International Development programs that improve food security. Urges the U.S. government and others to mobilize resources to increase the scale and scope of food security. Calls on U.S. officials to support the creation of a system to collect and interpret global dietary data.
201811 Addressing police violence as a public health issue — With law enforcement violence disproportionately affecting marginalized populations, calls on federal agencies, localities and states to add death and injury by legal intervention to their list of reportable conditions. Calls on Congress to fund research on the health consequences of law enforcement violence. Calls on governments to allocate funding from law enforcement agencies to community-based programs that address violence without criminalizing communities.
LB-18-12 Opposing family-child separations at the U.S. border — With the separation of immigrant children and families at the U.S.-Mexico border a public health crisis, calls for permanently halting such separations unless there is an imminent threat to the child’s safety. Urges federal officials to collect relevant data to ensure that children and parents can be reunited. Calls on officials to offer culturally competent resources to reunite separated families. Urges additional research on the consequences of separation.
- Copyright The Nation’s Health, American Public Health Association