APHA promotes a health in all policies approach as a strategy for addressing the complex factors that influence health and equity, also referred to as the social determinants of health, which include educational attainment, housing, transportation options, and neighborhood safety.
Health in All Policies: A Guide for State and Local Governments was created by the American Public Health Association, Public Health Institute and the California Department of Public Health, in response to growing interest in using collaborative approaches to improve population health by embedding health considerations into decision-making processes across a broad array of sectors. The Guide draws heavily on the experiences of the California Health in All Policies Task Force and incorporates information from the published and gray literature and interviews with people across the country.
Health in All Policies: A Guide for State and Local Government (169 pages; PDF)
An Introduction to Health in All Policies: A Guide for State and Local Governments (4 pages; PDF)
Health in All Policies and the Law (APHA webinar)
Learn more about Health in All Policies at the state and local levels
Baltimore's Cross Agency Health Task Force includes representatives from all city agencies working together to support 10 priority areas, which include promoting access to quality health care for all and reducing drug use and alcohol abuse.
Boston's Health in All Policies Task Force brings together city agencies and community leaders to use health impact assessments to examine the impact of all decisions and policies on health.
California's Health in All Policies Task Force relies on interagency collaboration to pursue health, equity and sustainability considerations into decisions making processes that impact the future of California.
The Colorado Association of Local Public Health Officials is collecting resources, analyzing data and reviewing case studies to reveal the potential of Health in All Policies as it currently stands within the state of Colorado.
Oregon’s Coalition of Local Health Officials has created a Health in All Policies Workgroup that will work with local Health departments around the state in a collaborative approach to policymaking.
The City of Richmond, California, has implemented a variety of programs and strategies to adopt a Health in all Policies approach following a community development process in 2012.
Under the principles of fairness and justice, Seattle-King County, Washington, has begun a six-year cross sector strategic plan to create equity in eight social determinants including child, and transportation and mobility.
Vermont has established a cabinet level body for health in all policies which particularly targets vulnerable populations.