Massachusetts Public Health AssociationOn June 18th, Healthy People/Healthy Economy released their third annual Report Card at an Understanding Boston forum at The Boston Foundation, where a panel of experts from government, industry, academia, and public health responded to the report’s findings.
The report gave the state higher grades than last year in eight issue areas, but flunked it for failing to remove the sales tax exemption for candy and soda. Massachusetts also received low grades for public health funding (D) and youth physical activity (C).
One area that the state excelled in however, was in the category of School-Based BMI Reporting, where Massachusetts was rewarded the first A — an A minus — issued by the Report Card.
The bottom line according to Healthy People Healthy Economy: “Massachusetts is making progress on many public policies that contribute to health and wellness, but health care spending on preventable conditions still precludes vital investments in education, public health, recreation and public safety.”The Report Card is a terrific tool to educate the public, media, and policymakers about the status of public health programs and policies in Massachusetts. We encourage you to download the full Report Card here and to share it widely!
Click here to watch a webcast of the forum.