Obama administration takes new action to improve public health

Obama administration takes new action to improve public health

Obama administration takes new action to improve public health

Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius today announced new investments that will help strengthen the nation’s public health workforce and fight disease and illness.

“These investments are part of our work to promote public health and they will help strengthen our efforts to fight disease and illness before they happen,” Secretary Sebelius said.
The initiatives include:

• The Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) is awarding $23 million in grants to 37 Public Health Training Centers to provide training to current and future public health workers in key public health issues such as nutrition and epidemiology, and to enhance the workforce’s basic public health skills.
• The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is providing $25 million to support fellowship programs, similar to medical residencies, and placement of fellows in state and local public health departments, as well as expanding training programs for existing public health workers, focusing on e-learning. This includes funding for 227 new fellows in contract and field positions providing necessary screening services and community education, as well as critical assistance with ongoing public health challenges.

“Public health workers are on the front lines, educating their community members and doing the hard work to ensure we stay healthy and can respond to public health challenges when they arise,” HRSA Administrator Mary K. Wakefield, Ph.D., R.N., said. “These resources will help ensure they have the resources they need to do the job.”
For more information on HRSA’s Affordable Care Act-supported public health workforce grants, see bhpr.hrsa.gov/grants/publichealth/phtc.html
A list of grant awards is available at www.hrsa.gov/about/news/2012tables/120829publichealthtraining.html
For information about CDC fellowship programs, see www.cdc.gov/fellowships/
To learn about CDC’s e-learning opportunities, see www.cdc.gov/learning