Question

At what level of government (federal, state or local) does responsibility for public health rest in the United States? Identify two roles/responsibilities of the federal government in public health and how this support state public health functions.

Answer 1

Responsibility for public health in United States rest in all levels of government.

Governments at every level—federal, tribal, state, and local—play important roles in protecting, preserving, and promoting the public's health and safety (Gostin, 2000, 2002)

According to CDC(2013) Some roles of federal government in public health are to

• Ensure all levels of government have the capabilities to provide essential public health services
• Act when health threats may span more than one state, a region, or the entire nation .
• Act to assist the states when they lack the expertise or resources to effectively respond in a public health emergency (e.g., a disaster, bioterrorism, or an emerging disease)

The state government acquire assistance from federal government during disasters or any epidemic outbreaks , in screening diseases and surveillance ,etc.

Ref:

1. Institute of Medicine, Board on Health Promotion and Disease Prevention, Committee on Assuring the Health of the Public in the 21st Century,National Academies Press, 01-Feb-2003

2. Gostin LO. 2000. Public Health Law: Power, Duty, Restraint. Berkeley: University of California Press.

3. Gostin LO. 2002. Public Health Law and Ethics. Berkeley, New York: University of California Press; and Milbank Memorial Fund.

4. Centers for disease control and prevention,2013