INDIANA – Public health advocates from across Indiana will gather at the Statehouse on Feb. 22 to celebrate public health’s critical role in Hoosiers’ daily lives and learn more about efforts underway to improve how services are delivered around the state.
Public Health Day will be held from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the North Atrium and will feature State Health Commissioner Lindsay Weaver, M.D., FACEP, a “Case for Public Health as Good Business” by the Indiana Chamber of Commerce, “Public Health and Hospitals” from the Indiana Hospital Association (IHA). The Chamber and IHA will announce their support of Health First Indiana, the state’s public health program, to ensure every Hoosier has access to the core public health services they need to achieve their optimal health and well-being.
Additional program features include local health departments discussing partnerships in action, and public health heroes championing the most significant public health transformation in Indiana in decades will be honored at the event.
Also attending will be former state Sen. Luke Kenley and Dr. Judy Monroe, a former state health commissioner who serves as CEO of the CDC Foundation. Kenley and Monroe served as co-chairs for the Governor’s Public Health Commission, which conducted a months-long examination of Indiana’s public health system. The commission’s work was the foundation for Health First Indiana (HFI), the state’s initiative created by SEA 4, legislation passed by the 2023 Indiana General Assembly that provides funding so counties can determine the health needs of their communities and implement evidence-based programs based on prevention.
Attendees are encouraged to wear blue or gold to support public health.
“The unprecedented Health First Indiana support has given local health departments new opportunities to create partnerships and improve health outcomes for Hoosiers,” said Dr. Weaver. “This event celebrates public health in Indiana as communities across the state come together to make a difference.”
More information on Health First Indiana is available at healthfirstindiana.in.gov. Visit the Indiana Department of Health at www.health.in.gov for important health and safety information, or follow us on X at @StateHealthIN and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/StateHealthIN.
