COVID-19 Episodes

Jan. 4, 2024

573: Disability Definition Coming Soon, Federal Priorities Outlined

Annie Evans, ASTHO director of Preparedness and Disability Integration, tells us ASTHO working to create a definition of disability to be used in the ESSENCE program; Jeffrey Ekoma, ASTHO senior director for Government Affairs, says legislative...
Dec. 21, 2023

569: Former Surgeon General Explains the Pandemic Response, Barriers to Family + Reproductive Health

Dr. Jerome Adams, the 20th U.S. surgeon general and current executive director of Health Equity Initiatives at Purdue University, who was the Surgeon General during the pandemic discusses his new book; Maggie Davis, ASTHO director of State Health...
Dec. 14, 2023

564: Flavored Tobacco Bans and Pricing Strategies, Respiratory Disease Guidance

Dr. Barbara Wallace, director of the Division of Chronic Disease Prevention at the New York State Department of Health, discusses various strategies to curb tobacco use; Dr. Marcus Plescia, ASTHO chief medical officer, worries that too many sick...
Dec. 13, 2023

563: Strategies to Protect Legal Authority, How Indiana Won a 1500% Funding Increase

Dr. Manisha Juthani, commissioner of the Connecticut Department of Public Health, outlines the continued challenges to public health legal authority; Maggie Davis, ASTHO director of State Health Policy, discusses a big win for Indiana as funding for public...
Dec. 7, 2023

559: Policy Ideas Address Maternal Morbidity, Investment in the 9-8-8 Hotline

Dr. Sameer Vohra, director of the Illinois Department of Public Health, examines the third edition of the state’s maternal morbidity and mortality report; Dr. Umair Shah, secretary of health for the Washington State Department of Health, discusses...
Nov. 30, 2023

554: Ending Structural Racism, New Book on Public Health Strategy

Dr. Kimberlee Wyche-Etheridge, senior vice president, Health Equity and Diversity Initiatives, ASTHO outlines the organization’s updated policy statement on structural racism in public health; Dr. Brian Castrucci, president and CEO of the de...
Nov. 20, 2023

548: Thankful for Public Health, New Guide to Manage Respiratory Illness

Dr. Steven Stack, ASTHO president and commissioner of the Kentucky Department for Public Health; extends his gratitude for Public Health Thank You Day; Dr. Marcus Plescia, ASTHO chief medical officer, discusses how ASTHO worked on a discussion guide...
Nov. 13, 2023

543: Rural Health Equity, Covey’s Advice for Building Trust

Dr. Somava Saha, President and CEO of Well-being and Equity in the World, discusses the importance of National Rural Health Day; Stephen Covey, a well-known author, had a message for ASTHO when he joined members at a meeting in Washington D.C. in late...
Nov. 7, 2023

540: How to Hire a Public Health Nurse, Roundtables Get Lawmakers Talking

Dr. Robert Goldstein, commissioner of the Massachusetts Department of Public Health, says local agency partnerships are key to the success of new public health performance standards; Allison Nickrent, director of governmental affairs at the Illinois...
Nov. 1, 2023

536: Workforce Care Initiative, JUUL Settlements

Tom St. Louis, Director of the Office of Public Health Workforce Development for the Connecticut Department of Public Health, tells us about the new Culture of Care initiative that aims to help staff recover from the pandemic; Amy Ciarlo, ASTHO Senior...
Oct. 25, 2023

531: RSV Vaccine Pitch, Virus Disparities

Dr. Marcus Plescia, ASTHO Chief Medical Officer, wants public health to focus on medical providers as the primary way to promote the RSV vaccine; an ASTHO blog article explains why public health readiness during the respiratory virus season is key; an...
Oct. 20, 2023

528: Flexible Climate Funding, New Federal Budget Deadline

State Public Health Officials Dr. Umair Shah, Dr. Joseph Kanter, and Dr. Natasha Bagdasarian, discuss the public health impacts of climate change; Carolyn Mullen, ASTHO Senior Vice President of Government Affairs and Public Relations, discusses hot...
Oct. 13, 2023

523: Making Decisions During a Crisis, PH Help Wanted

ASTHO CEO Dr. Mike Fraser and Dr. Ray Barishansky, Former Deputy Secretary for Health Preparedness and Community Protection at the Pennsylvania Department of Health, explain new research on barriers to decision making in public health response; Dr....
Sept. 22, 2023

509: Bundling Vaccinations, Hoping to Avoid a Government Shutdown

Dr. Gillian SteelFisher, Director of Global Polling at the Harvard Opinion Research Program, says promoting the flu, RSV, and COVID-19 vaccines together help broaden the appeal; Dr. Jennifer Shuford, Commissioner for the Texas Department of State...
Sept. 20, 2023

507: New Vaccine Poll Data, Blogs Help PH Workers Connect

Dr. Gillian SteelFisher, Director of Global Polling at the Harvard Opinion Research Program, shares the results from a study on public perception of COVID-19, RSV and Flu; Dr. Jennifer Thomas, Employee Wellbeing and Resilience Program Manager at the...