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MRSC FOCUS › Focus Archive › Health

Focus Archive - Health

Please note that Focus section links were valid at the time of their original posting. However, since Web sites and addresses change frequently, we cannot guarantee that all links will remain operative.

Homelessness in America: Finally, Glimmers of Light (November 12)
If we want to tackle health care reform–if we want to lower costs–we must tackle homelessness. More from Citiwire.

County Health Departments Plan ahead for H1N1 Epidemic (November 12)
President Obama’s declaration of H1N1 flu as a national emergency on Oct. 23 came at a time when many counties were already ramping up efforts to combat the disease locally. More from NACo's County News.

Flu Fighters (November 04)
Underfunded and understaffed health departments are leading a valiant effort to contain the H1N1 virus. More from American City & County.

Kirkland Tests Pandemic Flu Emergency Plan (October 21)
More than 50 City of Kirkland employees recently participated in an exercise as part of the City’s emergency management planning for pandemic flu. The test provided valuable information should it become necessary for the City to institute social distancing procedures in the event of a pandemic flu outbreak. More from the city of Kirkland.

Preparing for and Responding to Issues Relating to the H1N1 Influenza Virus (October 21)
Even in times of a flu pandemic, employers must still abide by anti-discrimination laws such as the Americans with Disabilities Act ("ADA") and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. More from Lane Powell's Labor and Employment Legal Update.

MRSC Services Survey (October 21)
MRSC is conducting a brief survey to assess whether or not our existing services are meeting your needs and to determine your interest in any additional services. We would appreciate your taking a few minutes to respond to these nine questions. Thank you.

The Difficult Path to Electronic Health Records (September 30)
They will produce better outcomes. But building this ‘network of networks’ will be complicated. More from Governing.

CDC's Recommendations for Obesity Prevention and Control (September 23)
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) just released its first comprehensive set of evidence-based recommendations on how local governments can address the nation’s obesity epidemic with policies and programs that encourage physical activity and healthy eating. More from ICMA

Web Sightings – H1N1 (Swine Flu) (September 23)
Governments at all levels are providing useful information about the H1N1 virus (swine flu) and the annual flu season, the subject of this month's Web Sightings.

International, Federal, and State H1N1 Sites

Selected Local Government H1N1 Sites

The Costliest Ride (August 05)
Transportation service for the disabled can be a budget-buster. Cities are looking at a variety of new approaches. More from Governing.

Biking and Walking: Our Secret Weapon? (August 05)
Biking and walking proponents say it’s time for the federal government to focus less on new and expanded highways, and far more on safe pathways and “complete streets” for our towns and cities. More from Citiwire.

Designing Healthier Neighborhoods for Kids (July 15)
Pediatricians are paying more attention to how neighborhood design can affect children's physical activity, and they have some recommendations for governments. More from Governing.

Catching the Flu (June 10)
Robert Pestronk, executive director of the National Association of City & County Health Officials, discusses local governments' level of preparation for a possible recurrence of the H1N1 flu. More from American City & County.

Napolitano to Fire Chiefs: Prepare for Fall Flu Pandemic (May 20)
Fire departments and paramedical services should “lean forward” this summer to prepare for a potentially more serious flu outbreak this fall, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano told the nation’s fire services’ top brass recently. More from NACo's County News.

MRSC's In Focus e-Newsletter for Councilmembers and Commissioners (May 20)
MRSC's bi-weekly In Focus e-newsletter is an excellent way for your elected officials to stay informed about the latest news, research, events and trends affecting Washington city and county governments. Sign them up today.

Rx for Reform (May 13)
We can't get to universal health coverage without taming costs. More from Governing.

Pandemic Influenza Resource Summary (May 06)
The Public Entity Risk Institute has assembled a list of official resources and links to help local governments gather information about managing a Swine Flu outbreak in their community.

Study Shows Effectivenes of Strategies Adopted by US Cities During the 1918-1919 Influenza Pandemic (April 30)
A recent study found a strong association between early, sustained, and layered application of nonpharmaceutical interventions by US Cities and mitigating the consequences of the 1918-1919 influenza pandemic in the United States. More from the Journal of the American Medical Association.

Celebrating 75 Years of Research and Services! (April 23)
MRSC proudly continues the program begun as the Bureau of Governmental Research and Services in 1934 at the University of Washington. In honor of our organization’s 75th anniversary, we hope that you will enjoy a multimedia slideshow containing highlights of our history. Also see “Twenty-Five Years of Governmental Research and Service” prepared in honor of the Bureau’s 25th anniversary in 1959.

MRSC Blog: Selected Local Government Press Releases (April 22)
We have launched our blog containing selected local government press releases to keep you informed on new Washington local government programs and initiatives. Each entry is assigned a category (finance, planning, etc.) and a tag (wetlands, urban forestry, etc.) so you can sort them by topic. If you have not already done so, please add blog@mrsc.org to your agency's press release distribution list.

Suburbs Not Most Popular, But Suburbanites Most Content (March 11)
Suburbanites are significantly more satisfied with their communities than are residents of cities, small towns or rural areas, according to a Pew Research Center Social & Demographic Trends survey. More from the Pew Research Center.

Operating Plans to Combat Pandemic Influenza (March 04)
Assessment of States’ Operating Plans to Combat Pandemic Influenza summarizes the status of States’ operating plans with respect to preparedness for, response to, and recovery from an influenza pandemic.

County Office Building Doubles as ‘Warming Center’ (February 19)
Camden County, N.J., like many urban counties, has a homeless problem. But unlike other localities, the county has taken a novel approach to housing the hardcore homeless on the coldest nights of the year. More from County News.

Welcome Home Soldier (December 18)
Local agencies team up to help wounded war veterans to heal. More from Parks & Recreation.

Parks and Recreation Departments Lead Community Wellness Efforts (November 07)
Parks and recreation departments in cities across the country are going beyond their traditional roles to promote community wellness through access to quality afterschool programs and other strategies. More from Nation's Cities Weekly.

Good Question! (October 02)
Regular users of this site know that we feature an "inquiry of the week" on the MRSC home page (see right-hand column). We have now incorporated a compilation of these questions and responses into the MRSC Index. The MRSC Index is a one-stop listing of all web pages, documents and inquiries that we have on any given topic. Browse the index by topic or search it by keyword.

Local Government Budget Library (October 02)
MRSC maintains an extensive collection of local government budgets organized by city, county and special purpose districts. We also link to online budgets (along with other documents and services) within the profiles that we maintain for each city and county.

Database Targets Childhood Obesity (September 18)
NACo has released the Healthy Counties Database, a new resource designed to help county officials prevent childhood obesity in their communities. More from NACo's County News.

New Feature - National News Clippings (September 04)
We've added a new feature to our "Local Governments in the News" section below. Now, in addition to our regular local news source clippings, we will also be featuring news clippings from various national news sources highlighting current events, trends and other news affecting Washington city and county governments and special districts.

Quick Links to City/County Information (July 17)
MRSC recently expanded the types of key documents (e.g., budgets and comp plans) and services (e.g., council broadcasts and online service request forms) that we track in our "city profiles" page. Use these profiles for quick access to city and town documents and services. For county information, see our "county profiles" page.

Going Holistic (June 12)
Paying attention to an employee's mental health as well as their physical wellbeing is part of a growing trend of breaking down the barriers in the delivery of traditional employee health care. More from American City and County.

Receive RSS Feeds of In Focus (May 23)
We’ve added another option for you to receive information from MRSC: RSS Feeds. Simply click on the RSS button MRSC In Focus RSS Feed to create an “MRSC In Focus” folder in your email program or RSS reader. You will automatically begin receiving updates to our main Focus page, “Local Governments in the News,” the four Advisor columns, and our “What’s New” section. You can unsubscribe at any time by simply deleting the folder from your RSS reader or email program.

Survey on Local Government Promotion of Healthy Eating and Active Living (April 09)
ICMA's Active Living Approaches by Local Government, 2007 reveals the tools and strategies that local governments consider to be the most helpful in addressing active living goals and combating obesity--and the barriers that impede their efforts. More from ICMA.

Assessing Mobile Technologies in Child Protective Services (March 20)
The Center for Technology in Government (CTG) recently published a report on the impact of mobile technology use in child protective services based on case studies of 23 New York State local social services departments. More from CTG.

Locate Sample Ordinances, Contracts, RFPs (March 13)
You can use MRSC's search system to locate a wide variety of local government documents. Note the new options to the right of your search results that allow you to limit your results by agency type, population range, region, form and class of government. Watch a brief tutorial to learn more about using our advanced search features.

Public Health Preparedness (February 22)
A new report from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), Public Health Preparedness: Mobilizing State by State, finds state and local governments are better equipped to detect and investigate disease outbreaks than they were in 2001, but challenges remain. More from the CDC.

Kirkland Wins "Healthy Community for Active Aging" Award (February 14)
The city of Kirkland recently received the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s "Building Healthy Communities for Active Aging Achievement" award. More from the city of Kirkland.

Training Video on Pandemic Flu Preparation (February 07)
A new video on pandemic flu preparation has been launched by Public Health Seattle & King County to help businesses, government agencies and community-based organizations prepare for the ongoing threat of what could be a catastrophic, world-wide event. More from Government Technology.

Methamphetamine Epidemic Rages On (December 13)
According to a new survey released by the Washington-based National Association of Counties (NACo), meth abuse remains a national epidemic that is straining local law enforcement budgets. More from American City & County.

A Magic Merger? — High Tech, Calmer Lifestyles (November 06)
Broadband. Telecommuting. Taming our roaring highways instead of multiplying them. Walking or cycling to work. Less tension, better health. "Work to live, not live to work." Could all those values come together? More from Nation's Cities Weekly.

HECB Seeks Applicants to Form Health Sciences and Services Authorities (November 06)
The Washington Higher Education Coordinating Board (HECB) is seeking applicants from Washington cities and counties to form health sciences and services authorities to promote bioscience-based economic development, advance new therapies to combat disease and to promote public health. More from the HECB. (Adobe Acrobat Document 38 KB)

America's Most Sedentary Cities (October 31)
Forbes set out to discover which cities were the worst offenders when it came to leading a sedentary lifestyle. Their list is 20 cities long and is topped by Memphis and New Orleans. It also includes surprising entries like Miami and San Diego. More from Forbes.

Supreme Court Upholds Pasco Rental Inspection Program (September 14)
In City of Pasco v. Shaw, the state supreme court upheld the constitutionality of a Pasco ordinance that requires that landlords obtain a business license and, as a condition for the issuance of a license, that the landlord provide a certificate of inspection. For more information see this News Alert from Foster Pepper.

Kirkland is Street Smart (September 11)
Cars dominate American roadways, but walkers, bikers and the disabled want more access. More from AARP Bulletin.

Management - The Struggle to Streamline (September 11)
States are trying to make social and health services intake and screening more efficient. Outsourcing may not be the answer. More from Governing.

Bottled Watergate (September 11)
A shocking discovery was made in late August: Some bottled water is municipal tap water. More from American City & County.

Considerations for Pandemic Flu Planning and Response (September 05)
Guidance for the development of contingency plans, organization of resources, and establishment of departmental protocols that can be used to respond to and help mitigate the effects of a pandemic influenza or similar health emergency. More from The Police Chief.

Virginia's Dangerous Dog Registry (July 23)
Virginia's Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services' Dangerous Dog Registry is a new online service that lists dogs that have been declared dangerous by the courts. The registry site includes legislation and Virginia's regulations governing dangerous dogs, forms for use by animal control officers and owners of dangerous dogs, and the database containing the location of dangerous dogs in the Commonwealth. See also a New York Times article, States Weigh Safety With Dog Owners’ Rights.

Urban Institute Report Assessing Federalism and Social Policy (June 11)
The recent publication explores what ULI's Assessing the New Federalism (ANF) project work can tell about the evolution of federalism within five major social programs during the nine years between 1997 and 2006.  Summary and Complete Report.

EPA's  Excellence in Building Healthy Communities for Active Aging Award (June 04)
This award recognizes communities for their outstanding comprehensive approaches to implementing principles of smart growth, as well as strategies that support active aging. The award will be presented to communities with the best and most inclusive overall approach to implementing smart growth and active aging. Entries due by October 19, 2007 Additional information on EPA's Building Healthy Communities for Active Aging

Pandemic Influenza Planning Best Practices Report (May 23)
The Department of Homeland Security's report,"Pandemic Influenza: Best Practices and Model Protocols (Adobe Acrobat Document401KB)," focuses on the need for a community to plan and prepare for a pandemic outbreak and includes best practices to support planning and preparedness.

Get Ahead of the Age Wave with Smart Growth (May 15)
The "age wave" created as the baby boom generation moves through the demographic cohorts is threatening to swamp communities across the country. More from Smart Growth Online.

Healthy Communities: Let's Plan on It! (May 15)
Learn how planning commissioners can coordinate with health advocates to ensure that neighborhood and community design is supportive of healthy lifestyles. More from The Commissioner.

Getting Around in an Aging Society (May 09)
It is important that communities provide public transportation for older people to ease the transition from driving to nondriving, while still supporting an active lifestyle. More from Planning Magazine.

New Toolkit for Meeting Needs of Aging Population (May 01)
The Washington-based International City/County Management Association, the National League of Cities and the National Association of Counties have created a "Viable Futures Toolkit" to help communities provide better service for aging residents and, by extension, all ages.

A Local Ladder for Low-Income Workers (April 24)
From 2000 to 2004, the number and share of taxpayers receiving the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) rose in response to economic challenges. Increases were largest in the suburbs of the nation's largest metropolitan areas. More from The Brookings Institution.

Human Services Collaboration Key in Small Counties (April 18)
Human services clients in small counties face all the same problems of those in large counties, with fewer resources to help them work through these issues. More from NACo's County News.

Reconnecting Out-of-School Youth (April 18)
A new publication from the American Youth Policy Forum, Whatever it Takes: How Twelve Communities Are Reconnecting Out-of-School Youth (Adobe Acrobat Document 9.1MB), documents what committed educators, policymakers, and community leaders across the country are doing to reconnect out-of-school youth to the social and economic mainstream.

County Creates Comprehensive, Regional Health Care Solution (February 14)
If an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, King County is making tons of progress with its revolutionary approach to its health care system. More from NACo's County News.

Locals Prepare for the Silver Tsunami (February 14)
Cities and counties are preparing for a "silver tsunami" of retiring baby boomers by taking a closer look at their service needs — including housing, transportation, health, safety and volunteer opportunities — and adding programs and facilities to meet them. More from American City & County.

Weighing In on City Planning (February 14)
As scientists investigate the relationship between sprawl and obesity, a compact style of city development sometimes called smart growth might become a tool in the fight for the nation's health. More from Science News.

Modeling Community Containment for Pandemic Influenza (January 18)
The National Academies’ Institute of Medicine, has released a report that explores the quality of influenza pandemic models and their utility for predicting the effects of various community containment policies on disease mitigation. More from the Transportation Research Board.

Study Highlights Resources Necessary for Youth to Succeed (December 28)
A new study by America’s Promise – the Alliance for Youth finds that when youth are provided with five fundamental resources, their opportunities for success dramatically increase and racial and economic gaps are significantly reduced. More from Nation's Cities Weekly.

Making Healthy Cities (November 08)
The city is a reflection of its people --- their beliefs, their skills, their relationships. This week's guests on Smart City are working in very different ways to improve the city by improving the lives of the people who live there.

Green School Design Makes Kids Smarter and Healthier (November 08)
A new national report, Greening America’s Schools, reveals that building energy-efficient schools results in lower operating costs, improved test scores and enhanced student health. More from the American Institute of Architects.

Local Government Response to Flu Pandemic (October 31)
Read papers from the Public Entity Risk Institute's (PERI) June 2006 Symposium which explored actions communities should be taking now to deal with a pandemic influenza crisis. More from PERI.

Getting Communities on Track for an Aging Population (October 03)
A recently released study by the National Association of Area Agencies on Aging, The Maturing of America - Getting Communities on Track for an Aging Population (Adobe Acrobat Document 2387kb), finds that less than half of American cities and counties have plans in place to meet the needs of aging baby boomers.

Guess Who’s Coming to the ER? (September 26)
It turns out that lower-income people are not the ones clogging up emergency rooms. More from Governing.

Kids in the City (August 22)
A new report from the Brookings Institution examines the well-being of children in cities, including changes since Census 2000, finding that in 2004 more than 25 percent of children in large cities were poor. More from the Brookings Institution.

Meth Remains Number One Drug Problem (August 22)
County law enforcement officials across 44 states reported that methamphetamine remains the number one drug problem in their county, according to a new survey by the National Association of Counties (NACo). More from NACo's County News.

Hospitals in Hurricane Katrina - Lessons Learned (July 26)
A new report from the Urban Institute, Hospitals in Hurricane Katrina: Challenges Facing Custodial Institutions in a Disaster (Adobe Acrobat Document 285kb), explores what happened in New Orleans–area hospitals during and after Hurricane Katrina including lessons learned.

Preparing for a Pandemic Infulenza (July 26)
A new report from the National Governors Association (NGA), Preparing for a Pandemic Influenza: A Primer for Governors and Senior State Officials, outlines four key principles to guide policymakers in shaping their pandemic response plans. More from the NGA.

Using the Internet to Prepare Citizens for Pandemic Flu (June 13)
How will cities inform and educate their citizens in the event of an avian flu pandemic? One tool many cities are turning to is the Internet. More from Nation's Cities Weekly.

Pandemic Flu Simulation: Implications for the Public/Private Sectors (May 24)
A report from Booz Allen Hamilton (Adobe Acrobat Document129kb) concludes that telecommunications will likely be overwhelmed early in the pandemic; therefore, government and businesses must coordinate and plan for the use of alternative communications channels--and telecommuting will not be a viable option.

White House Announces National Plan for Avian Flu (May 16)
The White House recently released its "Implementation Plan for The National Strategy for Pandemic Influenza" that details more than 300 actions for federal departments and agencies and sets clear expectations for state and local governments and other non-federal entities. More from Nation's Cities Weekly.

Healthcare Costs - Temperature's Rising (May 16)
The heat is on to find a cure for increasing healthcare costs as many local and state governments struggle to find the funds to cope. More from American City & County.

Retiring with Healthcare (May 16)
It seems inevitable that government retirees will be picking up more of their healthcare costs as soaring expenses, demographic forces and new accounting disclosures compel governments to reassess retiree healthcare benefits. More from American City & County.

OPEB: Coming to Grips with the Cost of Retiree Health Care (May 16)
The Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB) recently issued new government accounting standards related to "other post-employment benefits" (OPEB). More from Public Management.

Quarantines - the Law Enforcement Role (February 28)
Law enforcement agencies worldwide face the stark possibility of implementing and enforcing a public health quarantine of large portions of the population in the event of a pandemic flu outbreak. More from The Police Chief.

Pandemic Flu Planning (February 28)
Rising concerns about a widespread influenza pandemic have prompted state and local leaders to begin expanding existing emergency response plans. More from American City & County.

Many Pathways from Land Use to Health (February 28)
Growing evidence documents the adverse health impacts of common land use patterns in the U.S. More from the Journal of the American Planning Association (Adobe Acrobat Document117kb).

Pandemic Influenza Plan: Implications for Local Law Enforcement (February 14)
Post-outbreak action under the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Pandemic Influenza Plan will require taking steps that are highly unusual, possibly unprecedented, and almost certainly controversial. More from The Police Chief.

Land Use, Transportation, Air Quality and Health Study (February 14)
King County recently published the results of a study exploring how travel patterns, health, and overall quality of life are impacted by specific land use and transportation decisions. The report is available on the the county's Office of Regional Transportation Planning Web site.

Flu Summits Target Local, State Leaders (February 08)
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, in conjunction with other federal agencies, is holding a series of state pandemic planning summits designed to help local governments prepare for a possible outbreak. More from American City & County.

Pandemic Flu - Continuity of Government (January 31)
Seattle and King County's Pandemic Flu Web page offers information on continuity of government issues that should be addressed by local agencies.

Indoor Air Quality Grants Available for Northwest Communities (January 31)
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 10 (Alaska, Idaho, Oregon, and Washington) is soliciting initial proposals from organizations to fund indoor air quality projects. More from EPA.

Seattle and King County Pandemic Flu Response Plan (January 25)
Seattle and King County's Pandemic Flu Response Plan involves health care providers, emergency service providers, businesses, schools and local governments in a plan to detect, respond and recover from an outbreak.

HHS Grants $100 Million for State and Local Pandemic Preparedness (January 18)
The Federal Health and Human Services Department (HHS) recently announced $100 million in state and local grants to mobilize for an influenza pandemic. More from HHS.

New Ask MRSC E-newsletter (January 18)
Ask MRSC is a free, subscription-based, monthly e-mail newsletter featuring answers to selected questions received by our consultant staff. It's one more way for you to stay informed on current issues affecting city and county government. View a sample issue or go directly to our subscription page and sign up to receive Ask MRSC today. It's free!

Web Sightings 2005 (January 18)
In case you missed them, here's a look back at 2005's Web Sightings:

2006 Indoor Air Quality Grants Available (December 28)
The National Association of Counties' (NACo) Indoor Air Quality Program is now accepting applications from counties and regional county coalitions for small indoor air quality grants for 2006. More from NACo's County News.

Smart City - Important Demographic Trends in Cities (December 28)
Two demographic trends with major implications are America's aging population and adolescent pregnancy. This week's Smart City radio show guests explore what communities are doing to tackle problems associated with a growing number of aging citizens and too many teen mothers.

County Officials can Help Prepare for Influenza Pandemic (December 15)
Preparedness for pandemic influenza does not require a whole new effort or set of plans. More from NACo's County News.

New Grant Funds Available for Food Stamp Program Outreach (December 06)
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) recently announced the availability of at least $1 million of grant funds to state and local governments to improve access to and awareness of the Federal Food Stamp Program. More from Nation's Cities Weekly.

Getting the lead OUT (December 06)
Reducing lead in the nation's drinking water supply is fast becoming a national priority. More from American City & County.

King County's Tobacco Prevention Program Offers I-901 Info (November 22)
The King County/Seattle Public Health Department's Initiative 901 Web page offers residents and business owners answers to frequently asked questions about the initiative's ban on smoking in public places and workplaces.

Emergency Preparedness Planning for Pandemic Influenza (November 08)
MRSC's new Web page on "Emergency Preparedness Planning for Pandemic Influenza" offers information useful to Washington local government officials working on preparedness plans for responding to an influenza pandemic.

Updated WSDA Direct Farm Marketing Book Available (September 27)
The Washington State Department of Agriculture's (WSDA) Green Book is a valuable resource for farmers, county health departments, farmers market managers, agricultural professionals and anyone who wants to know the ins and outs of selling farm products direct to consumers.

Wellness - Carrots and Sticks (September 21)
There’s danger in expecting wellness programs to work miracles and abandoning them when they don’t. More from Governing.

The 50 Cleanest (and Dirtiest) Cities in America (June 21)
What’s the cleanest big city in the U.S.? How about the dirtiest? Reader’s Digest ranks the 50 largest metro areas in America and how they compare. More from Reader’s Dirgest

Fresh Approaches to Fund Programs for Children and Youth (June 21)
Many municipalities are scrambling to allocate resources to vital services, including those that impact children and youth. More from Nation’s Cities Weekly.

Smart City – What Makes a City Healthy? (June 21)
This week’s guests on Smart City™ talk about how we improve the economic and physical health of our cities. More from Smart City.

The Next Great Urban Crisis (June 15)
If you like disaster stories, then we have a doozy for you. It's a problem so great that Fortune magazine recently described it as "a time bomb quietly ticking away in the netherlands of state and local government." More from Civic Strategies.

Emergency Preparedness Planning Application for First Responders (June 01)
The federal Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality has released the Emergency Preparedness Resource Inventory, a new Web-based application to help local, regional and state planners compile customized inventories of health care and emergency resources. More from Government Computer News.

Dwelling Disparities: How Poor Housing Leads to Poor Health (May 24)
Consideration of the health impacts of the built environment--the human-modified places where we live, work, play, shop, and more--has been a key element in the ongoing evolution of the field of environmental health. More from Environmental Health Perspectives.

American Lung Association State of The Air: 2005 Report (May 09)
More than 152 million Americans live in counties where they are exposed to unhealthful levels of air pollution, according to the State of the Air: 2005 report. More from the American Lung Association.

Wellness Programs Lighten Health Costs (April 06)
The two biggest contributors that plague local government employee health care costs — obesity and smoking — are arguably the most preventable. More from American City & County.

ADA Guide for Small Towns (March 29)
The U.S. Department of Justice’s Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Guide for Small Towns presents an informal overview of some basic ADA requirements and provides cost- effective tips on how small towns can comply with the ADA.

2005 Top 10 Best U.S. Walking Cities (March 23)
An American Podiatric Medical Association (APMA) study reveals the top ten walker-friendly cities in the country. More from APMA.

NACo’s Grants Clearinghouse makes Finding Money Easier (March 09)
The National Association of County Officials (NACo) has developed a Grants Clearinghouse to streamline and simplify the grant-seeking process for member counties. More from NACo’s County News.

The Public Health Roots of Zoning (March 01)
Legal, historical, and policy rationales support the modernization of zoning and land use policies that allow sensible mixes of land uses. Mixed land uses make walking an attractive alternative to driving and support a more physically active and healthy citizenry. More from the American Journal of Preventive Medicine(Adobe Acrobat Document188kb).

Does the Built Environment Influence Physical Activity? (February 24)
A report from the Transportation Research Board, Does the Built Environment Influence Physical Activity? Examining the Evidence (Adobe Acrobat Document1065kb), reviews the relationships between physical activity, health, transportation, and land use.

Study Examines Government Disease Surveillance Systems (February 24)
Should a disease outbreak occur locally, how well would a state or local jurisdiction and its affiliated health organizations be able to respond? More from Government Technology.

Incredible Shrinking Public Health System (February 09)
An aging workforce, budget cuts and the inability to financially compete with the private sector in recruiting qualified health care professionals are some of the factors stressing state and local government health care systems. More from American City & County.

Get MRSC Web Site Updates and Quarterly Newsletter by E-mail (January 04)
Subscribe to MRSC's free bi-weekly Web site updates and quarterly newsletter and get all of the latest local government news and information delivered right to your desktop.

Web Sightings - 2004 (January 04)
In case you missed them, here's a look back at 2004's Web Sightings: