Public Health Review Morning Edition

Scott Murakami, PHIG Workforce Director and Principal Investigator with the State of Hawaii, shares how his department is utilizing Public Health Infrastructure Grant funds to support the state’s public health workforce; jurisdictions looking to stay current on PHIG deadlines, project updates, resources and more can subscribe to the PHIG National Partners Connections newsletter; Melissa Touma, Director of the Public Health Infrastructure Program at ASTHO, discusses why procurement timelines are so critical and how PHIG recipients are using the grant to accelerate them; and Melissa Magstadt, ASTHO member and Secretary of the South Dakota Department of Health, was recently honored with the State Official Award by the South Dakota Association of Healthcare Organizations.  ASTHO Web Page: Public Health Infrastructure Grant ASTHO Web Page: Subscribe: PHIG Connections Newsletter ASTHO Blog: PHIG Recipients Accelerating Procurement Processes South Dakota Association of Healthcare Organizations: SDAHO recognizes 9 individuals with Distinguished Service Awards during 2025 Annual Convention  

Dr. Susan Kansagra, Chief Medical Officer at ASTHO, discusses some of the downstream implications of CDC’s adoption of recommendations from the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices earlier this week; Dr. Holly Wilcox, founder and Director of the Center for Suicide Prevention and professor at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, shares findings from their recent suicide prevention studies focused on early intervention and child access prevention laws; ASTHO is looking for leaders from up to six jurisdictions that have been successful in preventing mental health-related harms to apply to join discussions and help shape strategies for the future; and a new ASTHO blog article describes how the U.S. Virgin Islands worked with ASTHO and the Department of the Interior to improve their grant and financial management systems.  ASTHO Blog: Downstream Effects of CDC Adopting ACIP Recommendations for COVID-19 and MMRV Vaccines Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health: Center for Suicide Prevention ASTHO Web Page: Success Stories: Advancing Health Agency Capacity to Address ACEs, Suicide, Overdose, and Mental Health-Related Harms Request for Information ASTHO Blog: Improving Grants Management in the U.S. Virgin Islands: Q&A with Tatia Monell-Hewitt  

Dr. Dan Edney, State Health Officer for the Mississippi State Department of Health and ASTHO member, shares how his state declared infant mortality a public health emergency to offer services across the state more rapidly; Bonny Mayes, epidemiologist with the Texas Department of State Health Services, discusses the article she co-authored to argue that Chagas disease should be considered endemic; PHIG Partners developed a practical resources guide to help public health agencies improve their procurement and hiring processes; and Dr. Scott Harris, ASTHO President and Alabama State Health Officer was recently the inaugural speaker for the Dean’s Seminar Series at Samford University’s School of Public Health. Mississippi State Dept of Health: MSDH Declares Public Health Emergency on Infant Mortality CNN: ‘Kissing bug’ disease is here to stay in the US, experts say. Here’s why it’s spreading PHIG Partners: Practical Resources for Improving Procurement and Hiring in Public Health Samford University: School of Public Health Launches Dean’s Seminar Series featuring Alabama State Health Officer Scott Harris  

Doctor Gen Meredith, Associate Professor with the Department of Public and Ecosystem Health at Cornell University, Associate Director of the Master of Public Health Program, and Director of Cornell’s Health Impact Score, explains how their new Public Health Strategic Skills Guide can help professionals in public health navigate changes to their roles and build upon their existing skillsets; Nick Jakubowski, Chief Operating Officer at the Connecticut Department of Public Health, shares how his agency used PHIG funding to upgrade their procurement and grant management systems and deliver monies to the community more efficiently; on Wednesday, October 29th, ASTHO will hold art one of a two part series on The Importance of Environmental Health Preparedness and Response; and subscribe to Public Health Review Morning Edition to start each weekday morning with a daily dose of insight from public health leaders across the country.  ASTHO Blog: Tennessee and Connecticut Are Transforming Procurement and Grant Management Systems Cornell University: Enhancing Public Health Strategic Skills Guide ASTHO Webinar: Weathering the Storm: The Importance of Environmental Health Preparedness and Response Part I ASTHO Newscast: Public Health Review Morning Edition  

In today's installment of the PHIG Impact Report, Celeste Jorge, epidemiologist and evaluator with the Connecticut Department of Public Health, discusses how her department is using the Public Health Infrastructure Grant. PHIG Partners Web Page PHIG Newsletter  

In this special episode of Public Health Review Morning Edition, Eric Whitworth, CEO of Inductive Health, discusses the importance of scalable data surveillance systems and how taking a broader approach to modernization can benefit health departments. InductiveHealth Acquires Envision Technology Partners Bringing Together Foundational Public Health Informatics and Industry Experts into a Unified Public Health Platform ASTHO Web Page: Innovation Advisory Council  

Mickal Lewis, Associate Director of the Center of Excellence on Dementia Risk Reduction with the Alzheimer's Association, shares how Community Health Workers play an essential role supporting a continuum of care for community members with dementia, and how public health leaders can help advance progress; Jeffrey Ekoma, Senior Director of Government Affairs at ASTHO, provides an update on the current government shutdown and explains how federal health agencies are impacted in this week’s View from Washington, D.C. report; a new ASTHO report provides key resources that can help state and territorial health departments break down silos and collaborate with their partners in Medicaid agencies to improve health outcomes in their communities; and Dr. Susan Kansagra, Chief Medical Officer at ASTHO, was recently quoted in a story for STAT Health about low-income children’s lack of access to the Covid-19 vaccine.  Frontiers in Public Health Research Article: Community health workers: developing roles in public health dementia efforts in the United States ASTHO Legislative Alert: Federal Government Shutdown Update: Contingency Plans Released ASTHO Report: Leveraging Public Health Assets in Medicaid Managed Care STAT Health: Low-income children lack access to Covid vaccines because of approval delay  

Dr. Edward Simmer, Interim Director of the South Carolina Department of Public Health, celebrates the department’s one-year anniversary with a recap of their achievements, including the highest health ranking in the state’s history; Dr. Bryant Thomas Karras, the Washington State Department of Health’s Chief Medical Informatics Officer, discusses the Fast Healthcare Interoperable Resource (FHIR) pilot program that his department participated in; on Thursday, October 9th, ASTHO will host the final session of the Ignite, Accelerate, and Activate workshop on applying emotional intelligence strategies to enhance leadership; and subscribe to the newscast to make sure you never miss the opportunities, initiatives, and insights from public health leaders across the country.  South Carolina Dept of Public Health: South Carolina Health Compass Dashboards ASTHO Report: Accelerating Data Exchange in Public Health: Insights from Public Health FHIR Pilots ASTHO Webinar: Ignite, Accelerate, and Activate: Series 3, Session 3: Applying Emotional Intelligence Strategies ASTHO Newscast: Public Health Review Morning Edition  

Alfredo Ramirez, Director of the Operation Analysis Office at the Tennessee Department of Health, explains how his department expanded its contract tracking system to enhance efficiency and manage grants across their life cycle; Kellie Waugh, Analyst of Health Improvement and Healthy Aging at ASTHO, shares how a new report can help state health agencies to support communities impacted by Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias by highlighting recent legislative activity and examples of promising strategies; tomorrow, Thursday October 2nd, ASTHO will host the final installment of its Succession Planning webinar series about putting the plan into action; and sign up for ASTHO’s legislative alerts to make sure you don’t miss any updates on the current federal government shutdown.  ASTHO Blog: Tennessee and Connecticut Are Transforming Procurement and Grant Management Systems ASTHO Report: From Policy to Practice: Supporting Brain Health and Caregiving at the State Level ASTHO Webinar: Succession Planning Part 3 of 3: Putting the Plan into Action ASTHO Web Page: Legislative Alerts  

In this special episode of Public Health Review: Morning Edition, Julie Sullivan, Principal at Berry Dunn, discusses how public health agencies can partner with Medicaid to share data and obtain needed resources while saving funds.  BerryDunn: Bridging the gap: Information sharing for Medicaid and public health agencies ASTHO Web Page: Innovation Advisory Council