Public Health Review Morning Edition

Geetika Nadkarni, ASTHO's Director of Infectious Diseases, outlines a new initiative aimed at reducing disparities in vaccination rates among adult racial and ethnic minority groups and rural communities; the Community COVID Coalition adds more social media resources to its portal for public health teams working to increase vaccine uptake among several unvaccinated populations; and Mei Kwong, Executive Director of the Center for Connected Health Policy, reflects on telehealth use over the course of the pandemic. ASTHO News Release: New ASTHO Program Aims to Increase Equity in Adult Immunization Community COVID Coalition: Social Media Assets - Vaccines ASTHO Public Health Review Morning Edition: Episode 118 – Selling Vaccines to Younger Adults Community COVID Coalition: COVID-19 and Social Media – Best Practices to Reach Your Communities

Mike Fraser, ASTHO's CEO, issues a statement offering early reaction to the Biden Administration's new National COVID-19 Preparedness Plan; Dr. Elisha Hall, Clinical Guidelines Lead for the CDC's Vaccine Task Force, explains the latest recommendations regarding suggested intervals for first and second doses of COVID-19 mRNA vaccines for some people; and Dr. Marcus Plescia, ASTHO's Chief Medical Officer, says the pandemic has everyone thinking about the social determinants of health and how to address health inequities. ASTHO News Release: State and Territorial Health Leaders Look to Next Phase of COVID-19 Pandemic White House: National COVID-19 Preparedness Plan CDC: Interim Clinical Considerations for Use of COVID-19 Vaccines Currently Approved or Authorized in the United States CDC: Interim COVID-19 Immunization Schedule for Ages 5 Years and Older CDC: U.S. COVID-19 Vaccine Product Information ASTHO YouTube: Heart Month Q&A with Marcus Plescia

Carolyn Mullen, ASTHO's Senior Vice President of Government Affairs and Public Relations, reacts to President Biden's comments about public health in his State of the Union address Tuesday night; Jeffrey Ekoma, ASTHO's Senior Director of Government Affairs, says the work ASTHO members did last week on Capitol Hill was time well spent; and Heidi Westermann, ASTHO's Director of Public Health Systems and Planning, explains how ASTHO is teaming with government and public health officials in Guam to help improve hiring and procurement processes. ASTHO News Release: ASTHO Commends President Biden's Commitment to Protect America's Health ASTHO Blog Article: Interagency Collaboration to Improve Business Processes in the U.S. Virgin Islands ASTHO E-Learning: Quality Improvement Learning Series / Serie de aprendizaje de mejora de la calidad ASTHO E-Learning: Introduction to Process Improvement

Dr. Marcus Plescia, ASTHO's Chief Medical Officer, says public health jurisdictions must have clear messaging when explaining the CDC's new community-level COVID-19 metrics; Elizabeth Head, Deputy Director for Injury Prevention at the Georgia Department of Public Health, explains the benefits of a collaboration with ASTHO and the Trust for America's Health; and ASTHO has a blog article about a new public health emergency preparedness academy in Puerto Rico. ASTHO Blog Article: Embedded – Puerto Rico's Public Health Emergency Preparedness Academy

Chrissie Juliano, Executive Director of the Big Cities Health Coalition, explains the critical need to hire hundreds of epidemiologists in public health departments nationwide; Richard Hamburg, Executive Director of the Safe States Alliance, outlines the vision for a national injury and violence prevention program; Dr. Kimberlee Wyche Etheridge, ASTHO's Senior Vice President of Health Equity and Diversity Initiatives, discusses equity as part of a panel hosted by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services; and ASTHO prepares to recognize women and nutrition in March. Big Cities Health Coalition: Report – Cities Need to Increase Number of Epidemiologists Safe States Alliance: Blueprint for a National Injury and Violence Prevention Program CMS YouTube: Black Health and Wellness – Building a More Equitable Health Care System

Dr. Esther Muna, Chief Executive Officer of the Commonwealth Healthcare Corporation in the Northern Mariana Islands, and Dr. Carlos Mellado, Secretary of the Puerto Rico Department of Health, deliver key policy messages during Capitol Hill visits; ASTHO offers a new blog article focused on actions jurisdictions have taken to address systemic racism in public health; and ASTHO launches a new website. ASTHO Blog Article: State Policy Can Reduce Systemic Racism in Public Health ASTHO Website

Molly Howell, Immunization Director at the North Dakota Department of Health, says testimonials from people impacted by COVID-19 have helped make the virus real for people with doubts about the vaccines; Chrissie Juliano, Executive Director of the Big Cities Health Coalition, says a shortage of epidemiologists has left many health departments unable to respond to a growing number of public health challenges; HHS seeks applications for $3 billion in grant proposals to improve public health infrastructure, workforce, and data systems; and ASTHO remembers a public health titan. Big Cities Health Coalition/CSTE: Report – Cities Need to Increase Number of Epidemiologists HHS Infrastructure, Workforce, and Data Systems Grant Announcement ASTHO Blog Article: Remembering Paul Farmer – When Public Health Doesn't Back Down

Dr. Lisa Piercey, Tennessee's Health Commissioner, says the increased availability of oral antiviral medications doesn't lessen the need for vaccines to fight COVID-19; Cortney Lovell, co-founder of Our Wellness Collective, says she hopes a new training program will inspire public health professionals to explore recovery peer services for people struggling with substance use; and ASTHO teams with the CDC to write an article for the Journal of Women's Health about a program that sent field staff to five states to help pregnant and post-partum people and infants exposed to opioids and other substances. ASTHO: Recovery Peer Services Training Program Journal of Women's Health: OMNI LC field placement process

Carolyn McCoy, ASTHO's Senior Director of Federal Government Affairs, shares how public health leaders will engage with Members of Congress today in virtual Hill Day meetings; Amber Williams, ASTHO's Senior Vice President of Leadership and Organizational Performance, explains the excitement for ASTHO's new PH-Hero program; and Dr. Kimberlee Wyche Etheridge introduces us to Onesimus, an enslaved African who helped save hundreds of Boston residents from smallpox in 1721. ASTHO News Release: ASTHO Launches Resiliency Program to Support Public Health Workforce ASTHO Blog Article: Who Is Onesimus?

Alex Wheatley, a Senior Analyst on ASTHO's Territorial Support Team, explains the work Territorial members will do tomorrow during the organization's annual Hill Day event in Washington, D.C.; Carolyn McCoy, ASTHO's Senior Director of Federal Government Relations, outlines provisions of the Prevent Pandemics Act being drafted in the U.S. Senate; ASTHO Government Affairs Analyst Devon Page writes an update on actions in Congress; the Community COVID Coalition has a link to a new campaign webinar planned for Thursday; and ASTHO releases an updated COVID Vaccine Comparison chart. ASTHO Blog Article: What's Next? An Update From the Hill Community COVID Coalition Webinar: Registration Link ASTHO COVID-19 Comparison Chart