Healthy People, the federally led initiative that sets 10-year objectives to improve U.S. health, has a long history of successes. But it did not reach those achievements on its own.
At the heart of Healthy People’s accomplishments are its partners, including those who have stepped up to go the extra mile through its Champion Program. Since 2020, nearly 200 public health-minded agencies, organizations and hospitals have committed to advancing health in their communities through the Healthy People 2030 Champion Program.
Among those is APHA, which pledged its support this year. The Association — which has 25,000 members and affiliated organizations in every state — plans to use its reach to share Healthy People resources with public health professionals so that they, in turn, can use them to improve the health of their communities.
“The goals of Healthy People are a natural fit for APHA and our members, as we are all striving to improve health and support equity,” said Mighty Fine, MPH, CHES, APHA’s new associate executive director for public health practice and policy. “Healthy People’s library of resources can help us get there together.”
To become a Healthy People 2030 champion, applicants provide information about their organization’s mission, reach and other work and commit to supporting Healthy People’s overarching goals and objectives. The growing list of champions includes national associations, health departments, libraries, health centers, hospitals, foundations and nonprofits.
Healthy People has been creating and monitoring national health objectives each decade since 1980. A final progress report on Healthy People 2020, released in 2021, found that the nation met or exceeded about 34% of objectives over the decade, and made improvements on another 21%.
The latest round of the initiative, Healthy People 2030, contains more than 350 core objectives, focusing on health behaviors, systems and conditions as well as specific populations and social determinants of health.
Public health professionals can use Healthy People 2030 objectives to measure progress in their communities and set goals for improvement. Evidence-based resources share the science and research around an issue and can help workers build support with partners, policymakers and grant funders.
To help health advocates drive action, Healthy People 2030 has selected 23 key objectives, known as the Leading Health Indicators. Moving the needle on the indicators, which address everything from air quality and food insecurity to infant deaths and homicides, can help the nation make tremendous strides in improving health.
For more information about Healthy People and the Champion Program, visit www.healthypeople.gov.
- Copyright The Nation’s Health, American Public Health Association
