Public Policy
Advocacy
APHL works to safeguard the public's health through advocacy for state public health laboratories and their federal partners. The association provides expert testimony, guidance on legislative proposals, and comments on federal rulemaking. The fact sheets, reports, and position statements posted below are examples of APHL's work to articulate the interests and concerns of its members and the public health community in the federal legislative and regulatory processes. All are also available in print.
APHL Supports TB Programs, Act
APHL and 9 other health organizations submitted “Statement for the Record for the House Africa & Global Health Subcommittee Hearing: Multidrug Resistant Tuberculosis: Assessing the US Response to an Emerging Global Threat.” The statement recommends that the best way to prevent the future development of drug-resistant strains of tuberculosis is through establishing and supporting effective tuberculosis control programs in the US and globally. The organizations also support the enactment of the Stop TB Now Act, S. 968/H.R. 1567.
Graph Depicts CDC Core Program Budget Levels
The Campaign for Public Health produced a CDC budget graph depicting funding fluctuations during the FY06 to FY08 appropriations cycles.
Senate Passes Newborn Screening Act
Late on the night of Dec. 13, the U.S. Senate passed S. 1858, the Dodd-Hatch "Newborn Screening Saves Lives Act." This bill includes provisions that, for the first time, require annual funding for CDC's newborn screening quality assurance program and that direct the Secretary of HHS to produce a contingency plan for newborn screening operations -- both of which were recommended by APHL. APHL is deeply appreciative of the work of Senators Christopher Dodd (D-CT) and Orrin Hatch (R-UT)in advancing this important legislation, and we look forward to working closely with Congresswoman Lucille Roybal-Allard (D-CA) and Congressman Mike Simpson (R-ID) as they move their companion legislation, H.R. 1634, through the House of Representatives. View the bill and the news release from Senators Dodd and Hatch.
Report About Electronic Laboratory Reporting
As a result of a consensus-building meeting, APHL and ANSER Analytic Services, Inc. have published “Framework for Electronic Laboratory Reporting: Recommendations to Policymakers.” The report concludes that there is an urgent need to develop electronic communication from local and private laboratories to local, state and federal public health authorities, including the CDC.
Presidential Directive Establishes National Strategy for Preparedness
On October 18, the White House issued a statement establishing a National Strategy for Public Health and Medical Preparedness. Under his strategy, the HHS Secretary would develop an operational national biosurveillance system with connections to international disease surveillance systems to provide early warning and ongoing characterization of disease outbreaks. For more information, click here.
APHL Testifies on Pandemic Influenza
On September 26, Pete Shult, PhD, director of the communicable diseases division, Wisconsin State Laboratory of Hygiene, represented APHL to the House Homeland Security Committee, Threats Subcommittee. APHL was asked to provide a witness for a hearing on federal preparedness efforts for an influenza pandemic. To read the testimony, click here.
House Adopts Appropriations Bill
The House of Representatives passed the 2008 Labor, Health and Human Services and Education Appropriations bill on July 19, 2007. The legislation includes $16 million to CDC for environmental health activities in order to better understand how the environment affects human health – a point that especially singled out for inclusion in the committee’s brief summary of the $154 billion bill.
APHL Supports Labor-HHS Bill
APHL signed a letter in support of FY 2008 Labor, Health and Human Services and Education Appropriations Bill, which received strong bipartisan support when it was agreed to by the House Appropriations Committee Wednesday. APHL was joined in the letter by education, training, disability, public health, health and biomedical research, aging and child welfare organizations, elected officials and labor unions representing the full range of stakeholders in the programs of the Departments of Education, Health and Human Services and Labor. The bill provides a modest 4.8 percent overall increase for programs.
APHL joined 850 education, training, disability, public health, medical research, child welfare organizations and labor unions to support the FY 2008 Senate Labor, Health and Human Services, Education Appropriations bill that increases overall funding above the FY 2007 level for critically important programs. To read the full letter, click here.
APHL Supports Healthy Communities Act of 2007
On behalf of APHL and its member laboratories, APHL President William Becker, DO, MPH, wrote a letter of support to Senator Obama, applauding the provisions of S. 1068, The Healthy Communities Act of 2007. Passage of this legislation would greatly enhance our ability to measure and monitor levels of chemicals in the US population. It would particularly enhance our ability to assess exposures in at-risk subpopulations that have traditionally been neglected. To read the full letter, click here.
APHL Instrumental in Passage of Mutual Aid Bill
Peter Kyriacopoulos, APHL’s director of public policy, testified before the Maryland House Health and Government Operations Committee on Feb. 13, 2007. He voiced APHL’s support for HB 344, which allows the state public health laboratory to enter into or renew a mutual aid agreement with a public health laboratory operated by another state. According to APHL's testimony, if this bill becomes law, “the direct benefits will occur when the continuity of public health testing operations is maintained because the Maryland laboratory receives additional personnel from another state.” According to the testimony of Dr. Jack DeBoy, Director of the Laboratories Administration, Maryland’s State Public Health Laboratory, “HB 334 is groundbreaking legislation and other states are watching with interest to see how this bill progresses as they prepare to submit similar bills in their own states.” A Department of Legislative Services fiscal summary concluded that “the bill would not create the need for expenditures above what currently would be required if a State public health laboratory needed emergency assistance or was asked by another state public health laboratory to provide emergency assistance.” The bill passed the House and Senate, where APHL submitted testimony to the Maryland Senate committee that held a hearing on the bill. The bill was signed by the Governor on April 10.
APHL Members Participate in Hill Day
On March 22, APHL members will visit Capitol Hill to educate their senators and representatives about issues that are of vital importance to public health laboratories. Click here to view the issue fact sheets, which can be used by members whether or not they are able to visit the Hill. For more information about APHL’s annual Hill Day, contact Peter Kyriacopoulos, director of public policy, at 240.485.2766.
APHL Supports Campaign for CDC 
APHL and 20 other public health organizations of the Campaign for Public Health met with members of Congress at a March 21 press conference and discussed increasing funding for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The core programs of the CDC would receive nearly $500 million less next year under President Bush's proposed federal budget than they got two years ago, according to an analysis by a nonprofit CDC advocacy group. Karl Moeller, executive director of the Campaign for Public Health, said funding of programs for which CDC is known — such as disease control, health information services, research and bioterrorism response — would be about $6 billion under the president's proposal. But folded into that amount is $158 million in emergency funding to prepare for a feared influenza pandemic, said Moeller. If the flu money is removed, next year's CDC budget for these activities would be about $5.8 billion compared to $6.3 billion approved by Congress three years ago.
APHL and CSTE Urge Support for Fellowship Programs
The Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists (CSTE) and the Association of Public Health Laboratories have written a letter to Representatives David Obey and James Walsh and Senators Tom Harkin and Arlen Specter, urging them to provide $5 million in the FY 2008 Labor-HHS-Education Appropriations bill for the CDC/CSTE Applied Epidemiology Fellowship Program within the CDC Office of Workforce and Development and an increase of $2 million for the APHL/Laboratory Science Fellowship Program within the National Center for Infectious Diseases. To read the full letter, click here.
APHL Supports Increased Environmental Health Funding
APHL has joined other organizations in signing a letter to Rep. David Obey (D-WI), Chairman of the Committee on Appropriations. The letter urges Rep. Obey to support significantly increasing funding for the CDC’s National Environmental Public Health Tracking Program and to enhance the Environmental Health Laboratory’s biomonitoring capacity. The funds would be used to expand the number of state and local health departments participating in the Tracking Program/Network and to enhance state public health laboratory biomonitoring capabilities. To view the letter, click here.
APHL Applauds Introduction of Newborn Screening Saves Lives Act
APHL commends Senators Chris Dodd (D-CT) and Orrin Hatch (R-UT) for their introduction of legislation to provide increased parent and health care provider education, improve follow-up care and enable states to improve their newborn screening programs. “There should be no higher priority than the health and well-being of our children,” says Sen. Dodd in a press release about the bill. The Newborn Screening Saves Lives Act of 2007 represents a significant commitment to improving the health of children by assuring that testing will continue to occur with the greatest level of accuracy and that those children with life threatening and debilitating disorders will receive prompt and effective treatment. Congresswoman Lucille Roybal-Allard (D-CA) and Congressman Mike Simpson (R-ID) introduced companion legislation, HR 1634. “It is unacceptable that babies continue to be born in this country each year with diseases that can be detected by a simple blood test, and then treated to prevent serious complications,” said Rep. Roybal-Allard in a press release. More
Regulatory Issues
Response to USPS Rule on New Mailing Standards | December 2006
APHL Comments on FDA’s Medical Devices Rule | August 2006
For more information contact:
Peter Kyriacopoulos
Director of Public Policy
240.485.2745 | peter.kyriacopoulos@aphl.org