Policy Brief

In the United States, 30 to 40 percent of food produced is wasted. Diverting edible food headed for a landfill onto dining room tables and homeless shelters can help reduce food insecurity and the negative environmental impacts of food waste. This resource outlines policy options to reduce food waste, including incentivizing food donation.

In recognition of Mental Health Awareness Month, Network attorneys and staff have identified six key policies with the potential to significantly improve mental health outcomes across the United States. This policy brief covers a wide range of areas focused on communities and those who work to support communities. It is designed as a practical resource for public health professionals, leaders, and partners, offering strategies to enhance mental health and well-being while reducing disparities in mental health care.

Requiring licensure for lactation consultants (a healthcare professional who specializes in the clinical management of breastfeeding) can lead to increased quality of lactation-based care, but it can also lead to barriers to entry into the lactation consulting profession resulting in a workforce lacking in diversity. The regulatory environment in Rhode Island for lactation consultants provides valuable insights into the challenges and opportunities faced by states interested in ensuring the quality of care provided to parents and infants while also ensuring that competent and trained professionals do not experience unnecessary occupational barriers.

This policy brief focuses on the definition of care coordination services provided by Community Health Workers (CHWs) in the state of Minnesota and was written in response to a request for research on how other state statutes and regulations define care coordination services. Minnesota is investigating the potential to expand CHW service coverage to ensure the sustainability of CHWs in the state. The state is looking into ways to define care coordination that allows the service to be covered. Definitions for care coordination or for CHW services that address care coordination (or comparable services) may be found in the statutes or regulations of at least nine states.

In honor of Black History Month, Network attorneys and staff have highlighted six policies that have the power to reduce health disparities and improve outcomes for Black people and communities of color throughout the United States. This policy brief serves as a practical tool to help public health professionals, leaders, and partners share strategies that can advance, rather than threaten, Black health and wellbeing over the long-term.

In September, President Trump issued an Executive Order on Combating Race and Sex Stereotyping (the “Order”), with stated goals  to promote unity and to “combat offensive and Anti-American race and sex stereotyping” within the federal workforce. The intent of the Order is to restrict trainings on gender and race discrimination that have “divisive concepts.” This assessment uses a public health lens to highlight four fundamental shortcomings of the Order.

A number of states have passed laws permitting the cultivation, sale, and use of cannabis. Many also allow cannabis-infused edibles to be manufactured, sold, and consumed. Cannabis edibles present a unique set of public health challenges including risk of ingestion by children and risk of acute intoxication due to delayed onset of the effects of cannabis when consumed as an edible. To address the public health challenges of dosing, attractiveness to children, and food safety, this survey examines eight pertinent variables.

Tax incentives, in the form of tax credits, deductions or exemptions, can be effective legal interventions for advancing the public’s health. This resource examines tax incentives that encourage prevention of child and adult injuries that occur while traveling, during recreation, and at home.

One of the key barriers to improving the health status of ex-offenders is the inability to secure employment because of their conviction status. Unemployment is associated with a number of negative health results, including mental health issues like depression, and lack of medical coverage. This Policy Brief examines ways in which states are using tax deductions to encourage employers to hire individuals from chronically unemployed populations, including ex-offenders.