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People who use electricity-dependent durable medical equipment (DME) at home—such as ventilators and oxygen concentrators—can face life-threatening consequences during a power outage. HHS reports that 2.7 million Medicare beneficiaries rely on electricity-dependent DME to live independently. This ASTHOBrief details the significant challenges that individuals who rely on electricity-dependent DME face during power outages and discuss recent efforts to increase support for this population.

Economic security and well-being, job stability, access to safe and affordable housing, access to healthy and nutritious foods, and access to resources to manage mental and physical health—all of these things impact individual, family, and community health. The COVID-19 pandemic has fundamentally impacted each of these social determinants of health for many Americans. Furthermore, some communities and industries have faced harder economic impacts than others, including households with low incomes, non-white households, and households with children. Human services and public health leaders can collaborate to make sure we are rebuilding systems and programs in a way that creates healthier, more resilient families and communities.

Environmental health and public health preparedness staff work closely together to respond to natural disasters and climate change—learn how in this report.

State and local jurisdictions are developing Ending the HOV Epidemic plans. The EHE initiative has largely focused on four key strategies: Diagnose, Treat, Prevent, and Respond to potential outbreaks. The EHE initiative set a goal to increase the estimated percentage of individuals with indications for PrEP who have been prescribed PrEP to 50 percent by 2025, as the national average as of 2018 is 18.2 percent. Several states have proposed and/or passed legislation to ensure insurance coverage of PrEP and/or to allow pharmacists to prescribe and dispense it. In addition to efforts addressing cost-related challenges, states can also employ innovative approaches—such as telehealth—to expand access to PrEP services to those in need.

May is Mental Health Awareness Month and the importance of continued mental health promotion and suicide prevention efforts during the COVID-19 pandemic. As we address the physical effects of COVID-19 through social distancing, mask wearing, and vaccination, we still need to prioritize mental health and well-being during and after the pandemic. A recent Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report found increases in adults reporting symptoms of anxiety or depression (36.4% to 41.5%) and unmet mental health care need (9.2% to 11.7%) between Aug. 2020 to Feb. 2021.