November 2011

Have You Heard? Facts From The Field is a weekly feature from the Office for State, Tribal, Local and Territorial Support to provide CDC and the field with facts and news from state, tribal, local and territorial public health agencies. We invite you to read and share this information broadly.

View the Current Have You Heard?

November 30, 2011

Local landlords now test for lead after Maine's Tracking Program identified that 40% of childhood lead poisoning cases occurred in five urban rental housing areas.
Data from California's Tracking Program influenced San Jose city leaders to open public cooling centers to prevent heat illness during record summer temperature days.
New York City agencies pursed restricting the use of indoor bug bombs based on a report by the city's tracking program, and other partners, which showed bug bombs could cause injury and illness.

November 16, 2011

Hagerstown, Maryland is one of only 11 U.S. communities to be designated a Safe Community for its community injury prevention outreach and education efforts.
The Kansas Fire Injury Prevention Program has saved 44 lives by installing over 33,000 smoke alarms in approximately 12,000 households statewide.
The California Department of Public Health and partners provided injury data and research to inform the state's newly strengthened child passenger safety law.

November 10, 2011

Over 35 states now have operational prescription drug monitoring programs that track abuseable medications.
Operation UNITE has been working since 2003 to prevent prescription drug abuse in eastern Kentucky by empowering and mobilizing communities.
Washington and Utah have developed clinical guidelines to help healthcare providers prescribe prescription painkillers appropriately.

November 3, 2011

States spend approximately $400 billion per year on health care costs associated with disability, ranging from $598 million in Wyoming to $40.1 billion in New York.
The Illinois Disability and Health Program partnered with three medical schools to develop a new curriculum that trained over 1,500 students on improving communication with and access for patients with disabilities.
The Kansas Disability and Health Program influenced state policy changes for establishing and operating emergency medical shelters to better support people with disabilities.