NEW: Rep. Naughton to speak at U.S. Surgeon General presentation in Boston
Tuesday, March 20, 2012
Rep. Eileen S. Naughton, a champion of physical and mental health issues in Rhode Island, will be joining U.S. Surgeon General Regina M. Benjamin in Boston on Thursday, March 22, for a presentation on New England’s progress in the National Prevention and Health Promotion Strategy.
National and local leaders in the health world will gather at 10 a.m. in Room 2200 of the John F. Kennedy Federal Building, 15 New Sudbury St., Boston. The program, which is expected to last until noon, will also include presentations from the following speakers:
Laurie Stillman, chief strategy officer, Health Resources in Action: Asthma Regional Council (ARC) of New England; and
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLASTMartin Nee, field staff division director, Office for Healthy Homes and Lead Hazard Control, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD): Smoke-free Housing Policies.
Participants will hold in-depth discussions of prevention and promotion of wellness activities in the New England region. Additionally, speakers hope to give an idea of what the next steps will be for the region’s implementation of the national strategy.
Representative Naughton (D-Dist. 21, Warwick) will be making a presentation on legislation she will be introducing that would establish a permanent Rhode Island Prevention, Health Promotion and Public Health Council. The panel would be responsible for coordination and leadership at the state level in respect to prevention and wellness promotion practices, as well as a statewide prevention and integrative health care strategy.
“It’s time we did our part in the National Prevention Strategy and instilled the same goals and standards here in Rhode Island,” said Representative Naughton. “I don’t think there’s a person in this state who isn’t in favor of reducing preventable illness and disability. We are looking to propose evidence-based models and policies to achieve our public health goals and ensure that our efforts on the local level are consistent with the latest standards and research.”
The bill coincides with the National Prevention Strategy, which the Office of the Surgeon General rolled out last year with the hope that it could help push the nation “from a system of sick care to one based on wellness and prevention.” The strategy remains a critical component of the Affordable Care Act of 2010 and serves as an integrated set of guidelines identifying priorities for improving the health of Americans with input from a cross-section of government, private sector and philanthropic organizations.
Representative Naughton was the recipient of the Mental Health Association of Rhode Island’s 2010 Mental Health Bell of Hope Award for outstanding leadership in promoting mental health care throughout her 18 years in the General Assembly, as well as Quality Partners of Rhode Island’s Healthcare Advocacy & Public Policy Award for her efforts on behalf of the Rhode Island Vision Education & Screening Program in 2005. In the past, she has served as a steering committee member for the New England Coalition for Health Promotion and Disease Prevention (NECON) Steering Group and introduced bills targeting topics like education for students with disabilities, HIV/AIDS prevention in newborns and patient-centered medical homes.
