Michelle R. Smith, The Associated Press, Author at ��ýҕ�l Health News

Public Health Experts Worry About Boom-Bust Cycle of Support

Congress has poured tens of billions of dollars into public health since last year. While health officials who have juggled bare-bones budgets for years are grateful for the money, they worry it will soon dry up, just as it has after previous crises such as 9/11, SARS and Ebola. Meanwhile, they continue to cope with an exodus from the field amid political pressure and exhaustion that meant 1 in 6 Americans lost their local health department leader.

By Michelle R. Smith, The Associated Press, Lauren Weber, and Hannah Recht

April 19, 2021

Underfunded and Under Threat

Pandemic Backlash Jeopardizes Public Health Powers, Leaders

At least 181 public health leaders in 38 states have resigned, retired or been fired amid the turmoil of the pandemic. The departures come as backlash against public health is rising with threats to officials’ personal safety and legislative and legal efforts to strip their governmental public health powers.

By Anna Maria Barry-Jester, Hannah Recht, Michelle R. Smith, The Associated Press, and Lauren Weber

Dec. 15, 2020

Underfunded And Under Threat

Public Health Programs See Surge in Students Amid Pandemic

Catalyzed by the paltry response to the pandemic and the inequities it is causing, people are flocking to graduate programs in public health to become the next front-line workers.

By Michelle R. Smith, The Associated Press and Kathy Young, The Associated Press

Nov. 17, 2020

Underfunded and Under Threat

Politics Slows Flow of US Pandemic Relief Funds to Public Health Agencies

Congress has allocated trillions of dollars to ease the coronavirus crisis. A joint KHN and AP investigation finds that many communities with big outbreaks have spent little of that federal money on local public health departments for work such as testing and contact tracing.

By Lauren Weber, Hannah Recht, Laura Ungar, and Michelle R. Smith, The Associated Press

Aug. 17, 2020

Underfunded and Under Threat

Public Health Officials Are Quitting or Getting Fired in Throes of Pandemic

A review by KHN and the Associated Press finds at least 49 state and local public health leaders have resigned, retired or been fired since April across 23 states. One of the latest departures came Sunday, when California’s public health director was ousted.

By Michelle R. Smith, The Associated Press and Lauren Weber

Aug. 11, 2020

Underfunded And Under Threat

Ex-West Virginia Health Chief Says Cuts Hurt Virus Response

The former West Virginia public health leader forced out by the governor says decades-old computer systems and cuts to staff over a period of years had made a challenging job even harder during a once-in-a-century pandemic.

By Michelle R. Smith, The Associated Press and Anthony Izaguirre, The Associated Press

July 10, 2020

Underfunded And Under Threat

Hollowed-Out Public Health System Faces More Cuts Amid Virus

The U.S. public health system has been starved for decades and lacks the resources necessary to confront the worst health crisis in a century. An investigation by The Associated Press and KHN has found that since 2010, spending for state public health departments has dropped by 16% per capita and for local health departments by 18%. At least 38,000 public health jobs have disappeared, leaving a skeletal workforce for what was once viewed as one of the world’s top public health systems. That has left the nation unprepared to deal with a virus that has sickened at least 2.6 million people and killed more than 126,000.

By Lauren Weber, Laura Ungar, Michelle R. Smith, The Associated Press, Hannah Recht, and Anna Maria Barry-Jester

July 1, 2020

Underfunded and Under Threat

Public Health Officials Face Wave Of Threats, Pressure Amid Coronavirus Response

Public health officials are confronting growing pressure — and threats — across the country as the backlash to the coronavirus response continues. At least 27 state and local health leaders have resigned, retired or been fired since April across 13 states.

By Lauren Weber, Anna Maria Barry-Jester, and Michelle R. Smith, The Associated Press

June 12, 2020

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