The decision to halt funding for several major public health projects will force Europe to lose an " incredible opportunity " to build on the achievements of the Europe Against Cancer program, according to head of clinical programs at Cancer Research U.K. " It was just buried on a Web site. It's a reflection of the way that the [European Union] works. Communication is not its forte. " The threa...

BACKGROUND Unlike pharmaceuticals and private medical services there is no single source of funding for illness prevention and health promotion and no systematic process for setting priorities in public health. There is a need to improve the efficiency of access to health funding across prevention and treatment. DISCUSSION We discuss a number of reforms to existing funding arrangements includ...

This is a commentary on Gilbert and colleagues' (1) paper on morality and markets in the National Health Service (NHS). Morality and values are not ephemeral qualities and universal healthcare is not simply an aspiration; it has to be enshrined in law. The creation of the UK NHS in 1948 was underpinned by core legal duties which required a system of public funding and delivery to follow. The mo...

In this commentary, the authors summarize and discuss some of the concerns presented in the papers herein, including issues of funding, skill sets and education. They present two key steps we could take across this country to ensure the long-term viability of public health within our healthcare system and ensure that public health and population goals are shared widely across our health systems.

Federal funding supports the growth and development of public health infrastructure and preparedness. The New Jersey Department of Health and Senior Services used federal funds to increase local public health infrastructure that included the hiring of health educators or risk communicators (HERCs). The HERCs are a diverse group of health and communications professionals trained in emergency com...

Public health enjoyed a number of successes over the twentieth century. However, public health agencies have arguably been ill equipped to sustain these successes and address the complex threats we face today, including morbidity and mortality associated with persistent chronic diseases and emerging infectious diseases, in the context of flat funding and new and changing health care legislation...

CONTEXT Discipline-specific workforce development initiatives have been a focus in recent years. This is due, in part, to competency-based training standards and funding sources that reinforce programmatic silos within state and local health departments. OBJECTIVE National leadership groups representing the specific disciplines within public health were asked to look beyond their discipline-s...