Recent News

National HIV Testing Day: Take the Test, Take Control on June 27, 2012

To support local National HIV Testing Day activities, CDC's National Prevention Information Network (NPIN) recently updated the National HIV and STD Testing Resources website. Visit the new National HIV Testing Day page to register your event or find an event near you. The website is designed to make it easy to find the right tools and resources to help community members, program staff, and other stakeholders raise awareness about the importance of HIV testing. The site is also available in Spanish.    

National Prevention Strategy Announced

On June 16, 2011, the National Prevention, Health Promotion, and Public Health Council, announced the release of the  National Prevention Strategy, a comprehensive plan that will help increase the number of Americans who are healthy at every stage of life.   

Healthcare-Associated Infections (HAIs) Train-the-Trainer Program 

Presentation slides from the CDC's regional train-the-trainer program on HAI prevention are now available online. The presentations are in a modular format to allow for selective viewing and files can be streamed online or downloaded for later viewing. Topics include hand hygiene, contact precautions and isolation, outbreak investigation, environmental cleaning, antimicrobial stewardship, and the Department of Health and Human Services' priority prevention targets. This information can be used for HAI training at the local level to eliminate HAIs in a variety of settings. 

Infectious Disease Prevention and Control (IDPC) Projects Page  

NACCHO recently posted an overview of current IDPC projects on its website. Learn more about NACCHO's work in this area here. 

MedImmune Advocacy: Fight the Flu Patient Education Program

The MedImmune Advocacy Flu Education Program offers informative and relevant patient education materials for families, patients, and healthcare workers. Materials highlight key facts about the flu and promote vaccination. All titles are free and available in English and Spanish. Access the information here; first-time users should use the key code NACCHO12. 

Vaccines for Children Program Report

On June 5, 2012, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' (HHS') Office of the Inspector General (OIG) released the report Vaccines for Children (VFC) Program: Vulnerabilities in Vaccine Management. CDC's VFC program provides free vaccines to eligible children through a national network that includes all states and U.S. territories and is composed of more than 44,000 participating provider sites. This program plays a significant role in improving access to vaccination for millions of children. 

Hepatitis B VIS Translations in Armenian, Farsi, Hmong, Korean, and Tagalog

The Immunization Action Coalition recently posted translations of the hepatitis B vaccine information statement (VIS) in Armenian,  Farsi, Hmong, Korean, and Tagalog.  

NACCHO Immunization Videos Page
NACCHO has gathered videos addressing vaccination into one convenient place. Watch short videos covering immunization issues, including influenza, pertussis, adolescent immunization, and personal stories about vaccine preventable diseases. Videos range from humorous to serious and target a variety of ages.

• Viral Hepatitis Workshop: Register for the NACCHO Annual 2012 workshop, Viral Hepatitis and the Local Health Department: Identifying Resources, Sharing Strategies, and Discussing Opportunities for LHDs and Community, on July 11, 2012 (8:00 AM-12:00 PM). Geoff Beckett, PA-C, MPH, Chief of the Prevention Branch at CDC's National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention's Division of Viral Hepatitis (DVH), will present on DVH's current priorities, followed by a question and answer session.  

• Local Health and Faith-Based Organizations (FBOs) - A Mini Summit: Faith and community leaders can be trusted messengers in their communities and powerful advocates for public health outreach. NACCHO and the Center for Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships at HHS will host a mini-health summit to provide faith, community, and health stakeholders an opportunity to learn more about LHDs and health resources in their communities on July 11, 2012 (9:00 AM-12:00 PM).  

• Billing for Local Health Services Session: CDC provided more than $6.5 million to 14 grantees in 2010 to develop plans that will enable them to begin billing for vaccine services. Grantees developed action plans that described activities, protocols,and procedures needed to pilot, initiate, and sustain a successful billing effort within the immunization program. This session on July 11, 2012 (12:30-2:30 PM), will provide a re-cap of the accomplishments of this endeavor and NACCHO's efforts to promote billing and disseminate lessons learned.   

Registration for NACCHO Annual 2012 is available here.  A preliminary program is posted on the NACCHO website. 

Third-Party Reimbursement for Vaccines: Effective Billing Strategies for Public Health Departments Webinar  

America's Health Insurance Plans (AHIP) and its member plans, in partnership with CDC, will host a free webinar on third-party billing for vaccines on July 18 (2:00-3:30 PM EDT). Titled Strategies for Contracting with Health Plans for Vaccine Delivery, this webinar is part of a series aimed at educating LHDs on the steps for contracting with health plans for vaccines provided to privately insured clients.  

Tools for Effectively Engaging Coalition Members and Stakeholders Webinar  

As part of its Summer Webinar series, the Immunization Partnership will host Tools for Effectively Engaging Coalition Members and Stakeholders on July 19, 2012 (12:00-1:30 PM EDT). Fran Butterfoss from Coalitions Work and Anita Colbert from the Immunization Collaborative of Tarrant County will present information on engaging members and present lessons from the field on empowering coalitions. Registration is limited. 

World Hepatitis Day

Sponsored by the World Hepatitis Alliance, July 28, 2012, is World Hepatitis Day. World Hepatitis Day was officially recognized by the World Health Organization in 2010 and it is now only one of four disease-related official days. Access awareness-raising toolkits here. 

Submit a Tool to NACCHO's Immunization and Infectious Disease Toolkits

NACCHO's Immunization and Infectious Disease Toolkits are intended to provide LHDs with resources related to immunization and infectious disease prevention and control practices. Examples of tools include templates, guides, community resources and much more. Log in to submit your own resources to the Toolkit to share with other LHDs.

Immunization 

Licensure of 13-Valent Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine for Adults Aged 50 Years and Older 

MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep. 2012 Jun 1; 61(22):394-95.       

Infectious Disease

Changing Socioeconomic Indicators of Human Plague, New Mexico, USA

Schotthoefer AM, Eisen RJ, Kugeler KJ, Ettestad P, Reynolds PJ, Brown T, et al. Emerg Infect Dis. 2012 Jul; 18(7):E-pub ahead of print. 

Investigation of the First Laboratory-Acquired Human Cowpox Virus Infection in the United States 

McCollum AM, Austin C, Nawrocki J, Howland J, Pryde J, Vaid A, Holmes D, Weil MR, Li Y, Wilkins K, Zhao H, Smith SK, Karem K, Reynolds MG, Damon IK. J Infect Dis. 2012; 206(1):63-68.  

Measles Outbreak Associated with an Arriving Refugee - Los Angeles County, California, August-September 2011 

MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep. 2012 Jun 1; 61(21): 385-89. 

Neonatal Herpes Simplex Virus Infection Following Jewish Ritual Circumcisions that Included Direct Orogenital Suction - New York City, 2000-2011  

MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep. 2012 Jun 8; 61(22):405-09.  

Staphylococcus aureus Colonization in Children With Community-Associated Staphylococcus aureus Skin Infections and Their Household Contacts 

Fritz SA, Hogan PG, Hayek G, Eisenstein KA, Rodriguez M, Krauss M, Garbutt J, Fraser VJ. Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med. 2012; 166(6):551-57. 

The mission of the National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO) is to be a leader, partner, catalyst, and voice for local public health departments.