Public Health
Throughout this pandemic, we have seen how hard public health professionals work, as well as the constraints under which they work and the limits of their reach. Their jobs have been made so much harder by the unnecessary and damaging injection of politics. Their job is prevention, education, and the creation of a healthier community for all residents. We need to recognize and support the incredibly important role of public health. This pandemic won’t be the last public health emergency – and there are smaller, significant tasks that they perform every day for the common good. They are an essential part of the backbone of our community.
Fully fund and staff public health; include robust funding for public education.
Ensure that public health professionals are free from political pressures/constraints so they can actually provide the public with unvarnished public health advice and education (i.e., stop the political gaslighting and anti-science pressures that have cost so many lives).
Use the expertise available – in particular, tap into the public health expertise available at the Regents’ universities (a revenue neutral resource); again, politics should not prevent this from happening – leverage our excellent resources to the benefit of all.
Coordinate among local, state and federal levels.
Ensure a coordinated outreach strategy tailored to different segments of society.
Ensure robust STEM education in the state (math, science, statistics) so the population has the foundation to be receptive to public health advice.