7/16/2012
Leading Housing and Health Non-profits Announce Framework for Greater Collaboration
between the Public Health and Housing Policy Communities
New recommendations for dialogue and action aim to advance health and housing objectives
Today, the National Center for Healthy Housing, the Center for Housing Policy, ChangeLab Solutions, and Trust for America’s Health released a new issue brief calling for greater collaboration between the public health and housing communities. The paper, “Housing and Health: New Opportunities for Dialogue and Action”, recommends a more coordinated and integrated approach among housing, environmental health, and public health agencies to help improve the health of children, older adults, and other community members.
The connection between housing and health has gained increased attention at the federal, state, and local levels. Groups working on housing and health issues – as well as other related issues such as smart growth, transportation, older adults – are increasingly focused on areas of overlapping interests, with the potential to join forces to create a broader coalition that can more effectively educate stakeholders. The new attention on housing and health demands a better alliance and communication between policy makers, non-governmental organizations, and funders who focus on housing and health.
The paper evaluates and outlines the health effects of housing quality, housing affordability, physical neighborhood attributes, and social and community attributes. Many aspects of community planning and design are aimed at improving individual components of human experience and it is important that siloed government agencies and organizations realize the interrelationship of health consequences and environment.
"This document reflects the collaborative cross-sector efforts that are envisioned in the National Prevention Strategy, and should be a template for further engagement," said Jeffrey Levi, executive director of Trust For America’s Health and chair of the Advisory Group on Prevention, Health Promotion, and Integrative and Public Health.
“The paper is a first step toward building a national cross-disciplinary dialogue that will advance healthier homes and neighborhoods across the country,” said Rebecca Morley, executive director of the National Center for Healthy Housing.
The new opportunities for discussion and action outlined in the paper provides a framework and calls on federal agencies, philanthropy, and non-governmental organizations to lead by example through modeling cross-disciplinary initiatives, aligning funding and programs toward mutual goals, and broadly disseminating lessons learned in order to contribute to the health of all community members.
Funding support for the paper was made possible through the American Public Health Association and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Download the full paper.
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ChangeLab Solutions works with neighborhoods, cities, and states to transform communities with laws and policies that create lasting change. Our Healthy Housing project works with communities around the country to make it easier for people to live in homes that are healthy. From healthier air inside the home to healthier neighborhoods, our policy programs make living better for everyone.
The Center for Housing Policy is the research affiliate of the National Housing Conference (NHC) and specializes in developing solutions through research. In partnership with NHC and its members, the Center works to broaden understanding of the nation’s housing challenges and to examine the impact of policies and programs developed to address these needs.
The National Center for Healthy Housing (NCHH) is the only national scientific and technical non-profit organization dedicated to creating healthy and safe homes for America’s children through practical and proven steps. NCHH develops scientifically valid and practical strategies to make homes safe from hazards, to alert low- income families about housing-related health risks, and to help them protect their children.
Trust for America’s Health is a non-profit, non-partisan organization dedicated to saving lives by protecting the health of every community and working to make disease prevention a national priority.