Episodes

Mississippi is facing a stark reality: its infant mortality rate has climbed to the highest level in more than a decade, according to the latest 2025 Mississippi public health report card. ASTHO member and State Health Office...

In a crowded funding environment, telling your story clearly isn’t extra work; it’s essential infrastructure. ASTHO Director of Infrastructure Communications Elise Moore explores a growing trend in grant funding: community impact statements, and why they’re becoming essential. At their core, these …

For U.S. territories and freely associated states in the Pacific, climate change is a daily reality. Today, ASTHO Senior Analyst for Environmental Health Shelbi Davis talks about how these island communities are navigating some of the most severe climate-related health risks in the world. From inte…

Much of the data public health leaders need already exists, but it just isn’t accessible as it could be. Today, we’ll hear about a new platform aiming to unlock the full potential of population health data. Dr. Anne Zink, ASTHO past president and a senior fellow at the Yale School of Public Health …

Rural communities face some of the most complex and often overlooked public health challenges. Today, Melanie Ramsey, deputy director of CDC’s Office of Rural Health, discusses how a new national effort is working to close those gaps. The Rural Health Academy is a growing initiative designed to str…

Cyberattacks aren’t just an IT problem; they’re a potential public health emergency. ASTHO Senior Analyst for Preparedness, Maggie Nilz, explains how cyber disruptions are reshaping the foundation of public health systems. She explains how increasingly interconnected digital infrastructure has made…

When overdose cases suddenly spike, every second counts. In this episode, Jessica Pough, director of overdose preparedness and response at ASTHO, talks about a new tool designed to help communities prepare before a crisis hits. The “Overdose Spike Preparedness Exercise: Tabletop in a Box” gives sta…

Strong leaders don’t just appear, they’re developed. In this episode, Joshua Allen, leadership training director for the South Carolina Department of Public Health’s Bureau of Organizational Development, talks about how targeted supervisor training and mentorship programs are reshaping workforce cu…

What does it take to build and sustain a strong public health workforce in uncertain times? In this episode Kirsten Aird, public health director for Oregon’s Multnomah County, explores how strategic investments are strengthening workforce capacity, stability, and community impact. Aird breaks down …

Public health data modernization isn’t a quick fix; it’s a multi-decade transformation. In this episode, ASTHO Senior Vice President for Population Health and Innovation, Jen Layden, talks about the real progress happening across the country and the persistent challenges that remain. Drawing from i…

How do public health officials detect emerging viruses before they spread widely across the U.S.? Heather Reese, genomic epidemiology and preparedness team lead at CDC, tells us about the Traveler-Based Genomic Surveillance (TGS) program: a cutting-edge effort that turns international travel into a…

Public health challenges don’t exist in neat categories, so why does funding? In this episode, Corinne Gillenwater, ASTHO senior analyst for chronic disease and health improvement, unpacks the limitations of traditional, siloed funding models and explores a more adaptive approach: flexible funding.…

What does it take to build a stronger, more resilient food system? In this episode, we speak with Nessa Richman, executive director of the Rhode Island Food Policy Council, about how the Council is bringing diverse stakeholders together to tackle complex food challenges, from farmers and fishers to…

Grants management doesn’t always get the spotlight, but it’s critical to how public health departments operate and deliver services. In this episode, Colton Anderson, a senior analyst in public health systems and improvement at ASTHO, explains how agencies across the country are rethinking and impr…

What does it take to turn a struggling performance management system into a national standout? Anna Bryant, performance manager at the Louisiana Department of Health, shares the story of how her team went from receiving an action plan after initial accreditation in 2019 to earning top recognition d…

At this year’s Spring Leadership Forum, momentum was unmistakable. With more than 40 health officials convening for a week of strategy, training, and direct engagement with federal leaders, a unified message emerged: the future of public health depends on sustained investment and smarter, more flex…

What if public health recruitment started with a summer camp? In this PHIG impact report, Veronika Hanna and Mondi Mason from the Denver Department of Public Health and Environment share how creative workforce strategies powered by the Public Health Infrastructure Grant (PHIG) are opening new pathw…

Today: bringing oral health into the public health conversation with Flora Nathan, assistant secretary for the Bureau of Oral Health in the Republic of the Marshall Islands. At her first ASTHO Spring Leadership Forum, Flora s...

The FY27 federal budget proposal is officially out, and while it’s just the opening move, there’s already a lot to unpack. In this episode, ASTHO’s Senior Director for Government Affairs, Jeffrey Ekoma, breaks down what’s in the proposal, what’s changed from last year, and what it all signals for p…

Public health doesn’t stop at hospitals or health departments, it lives in barbershops, grocery stores, schools, and small businesses. In this episode for National Public Health Week, Megan DeNubila-Griffin, ASTHO assistant director of chronic disease and health improvement, explores how agencies a…

In this National Public Health Week conversation about community leadership and tobacco control, Josh Berry, director, chronic disease risk factors, at ASTHO, breaks down how state and territorial programs partner with trusted, on-the-ground community organizations to reach at-risk populations and …

Scientific advancement has always been at the heart of public health, but as new technologies emerge, the opportunities and challenges are evolving. In this National Public Health Week conversation, ASTHO Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Susan Kansagra, explores how public health can better integrate inn…

As National Public Health Week kicks off, this episode spotlights a theme that often goes unnoticed but is essential to keeping communities safe: government partners. ASTHO CEO Dr. Joseph Kanter reflects on the “invisible wins” of public health, from behind-the-scenes planning for massive events li…

As the federal budget process stalls, uncertainty continues to ripple through Washington. ASTHO’s Senior Director of Government Affairs, Jeffrey Ekoma, joins us to break down the latest on the ongoing Department of Homeland S...