National Prevention Strategy

National Prevention Strategy

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The National Prevention Strategy: America’s Plan for Better Health and Wellness
Developing the National Prevention and Health Promotion Strategy: Overview
Principles for Developing the National Prevention and Health Promotion Strategy
Draft National Prevention and Health Promotion Framework

The National Prevention Strategy: America’s Plan for Better Health and Wellness

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. The National Prevention Strategy recognizes that good health comes not just from receiving quality medical care, but also from clean air and water, safe outdoor spaces for physical activity, safe worksites, healthy foods, violence-free environments and healthy homes. Prevention should be woven into all aspects of our lives, including where and how we live, learn, work and play. Everyone—businesses, educators, health care institutions, government, communities and every single American—has a role in creating a healthier nation.

Release Materials:

News Release
Webcast of Thursday June 16th release event

National Prevention Strategy

Download the strategy in full: National Prevention Strategy (PDF – 4.66 MB)
Read the strategy section by section
National Prevention Strategy Fact Sheet
Announcement: To send an announcement about the National Prevention Strategy to friends or colleagues, visit: http://www.healthcare.gov/center/councils/nphpphc/strategy/announcement.html.

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Use the E-mail button at the top of the page to send others a link to the announcement.

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Copies of the National Prevention Strategy are available but limited by emailing prevention.council@hhs.gov.

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Developing the National Prevention and Health Promotion Strategy: Overview

After obtaining ideas from stakeholders and working closely with the advisory group, the Council will devise a National Prevention and Health Promotion Strategy that will:

Set goals, actions, and timelines to carry out the strategy to reduce the incidence of preventable illness and disability in the United States and promote health and well-being;
Recommend improvements to federal efforts relating to prevention, health promotion, public health, and integrative health-care practices to ensure those efforts are consistent with standards and evidence;
Identify actions within and across federal departments and agencies that relate to prevention, health promotion, and public health; and
Prioritize evidence-based policy and program interventions to address both the leading causes of death and disability in the United States (heart disease, cancer, stroke, chronic lower respiratory diseases, and unintentional injuries) and the preventable behaviors—including tobacco use, poor nutrition, physical inactivity, and excessive alcohol use—that contribute to those causes.

These priorities will align with the prevention and wellness goals set out in the government’s Healthy People 2020 initiative, which sets health targets for the population over the next decade:

Increase quality of life (including years of healthy life) for all Americans
Eliminate health disparities
Promote healthy development and healthy behaviors across life stages
Create social and physical environments that promote good health

Interventions will reach beyond the health care and public health sectors to include activities that influence health in areas, such as:

Housing;
Transportation;
Food and nutrition;
In-school and outdoor education;
The workplace; and
The environment

The strategy will bring greater focus and attention to prevention, health promotion, and wellness through federal policies and program.

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Principles for Developing the National Prevention and Health Promotion Strategy

The Strategy will be developed using guiding principles and will be grounded in evidence-based interventions that will ensure the maximum sustainable health impact is achieved. These principles will:

Establish a cohesive federal response by having the cabinet and federal agency heads “own” the strategy. Aligning the unique missions and assets of various federal departments and agencies can accelerate progress on the strategy’s specific priorities and ensure it produces significant, measurable results with specific objectives and timelines.
Focus on preventing the leading causes of death and their underlying factors to reduce tobacco use and obesity; increase healthy behaviors such as physical activity, good nutrition, and seatbelt use; and create sustainable occupational, environmental, and community change that supports individual and community well-being (e.g., healthy housing, transportation, education, and workplaces).
Prioritize interventions to emphasize those that prove effective, have an impact, and are sustainable. Policy, environmental, and systems changes that are affordable, long-lasting, and far-reaching are crucial. Interventions must be grounded in science, be scalable, and be able to generate significant positive impact in supporting wellness and health. The council will incorporate emerging evidence-based strategies from research into plans.
Promote preventive care practices such as appropriate use of low-dose aspirin therapy, control of high blood pressure and high cholesterol, tobacco cessation and screening, and brief intervention for depression and alcohol abuse. These interventions would save tens of thousands of lives each year. Too few people—and especially too few low-income and underserved populations—receive preventive services even when they are available. The Affordable Care Act ensures that important preventive services are covered without patients having to share the costs.
Align efforts between the public and private sectors to enhance effectiveness. A comprehensive Strategy must span the public and private sectors. The council will collaborate with private and nonprofit entities, including businesses and labor organizations, health care organizations, faith-based organizations, advocacy and community groups, other private and nonprofit health service agencies.
Ensure accountability by specifying goals, metrics, and methods to evaluate its effectiveness.

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Draft National Prevention and Health Promotion Framework

The National Prevention Council received input from the public and the Advisory Group on Prevention, Health Promotion, and Integrative and Public Health Council on the draft framework (PDF - 453 KB) for the National Prevention Strategy. The official public comment period on the National Prevention Strategy is closed. If you would like to contact the National Prevention Council about the National Prevention Strategy, please send an e-mail to prevention.council@hhs.gov. We thank all of you who took the time to submit your comments and feedback.

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