APHA Calls for Significant Increases to CDC to Fund Nation's Public Health System; Says Funding System Crisis by Crisis Is Not the Answer

5/14/2003

From: David Fouse of the American Public Health Association, 202-777-2501 or david.fouse@apha.org

WASHINGTON, May 14 -- The American Public Health Association today called on Congress to think more strategically about investing in the nation's public health system and to avoid funding it crisis by crisis or program by program. Congress instead should provide sustained, adequate support to repair the system's strained foundation to protect Americans against everyday illnesses while building in capacity to respond to emergencies.

"In the absence of a robust public health system with built-in surge capacity, every crisis 'du jour' also forces trade-offs - attention to one infectious disease at the expense of another, attention to infectious disease prevention at the expense of chronic disease prevention and other public health responsibilities," said Georges C. Benjamin, MD, FACP, executive director of APHA, during testimony before the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services and Education.

"We need to develop a blueprint for where we want to be 10 years from now and ensure our public health foundation is adequately funded," he said. "It is time for Congress to support CDC as an agency - not just the individual programs that it funds."

Benjamin questioned the wisdom of the administration's proposed budget for 2004, which funds CDC by $6.6 billion, an 8.5 percent cut from 2003.

"We are at a critical juncture for public health," said Benjamin. "For many years, experts have been warning us that our nation's public health infrastructure is in disarray. We lack adequate personnel and training, laboratory capacity and communications networks. There are serious gaps in our disease surveillance systems. In this age when biological and chemical terrorism are added to the portfolio of public health threats, we need to be assured that the system works and works well."

"It is also very important to remember that while CDC is addressing the high profile issues of SARS and smallpox and West Nile, it is also charged with preventing the leading causes of death in this country, which include chronic diseases and injury in addition to other infectious diseases," he said. "We need to ensure that while we are fighting our public health enemies at the door we are also protecting our home base."

Benjamin testified on behalf of the CDC Coalition, a group of organizations that supports an adequate funding level for the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that enables it to carry out its mission to protect and promote good health and to assure that research findings are translated into effective state, local and community programs.

The full testimony is available at http://www.apha.org/legislative/testimonies/FY2004.htm.

------ The American Public Health Association, the oldest and largest organization of public health professionals, represents more than 50,000 members from over 50 public health occupations.

Note: All APHA news releases are available at www.apha.org/news