News & Events Archive

The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine is seeking suggestions for experts to participate in the new study tasked with assessing federal policies impacting child poverty required of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) in the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023. In so doing, the committee will solicit and consider public comment on child poverty, the Child Tax Credit (CTC), and Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC), including input from people with lived experience.

During the webinar, you’ll hear from other school districts conducting walkthrough assessments and learn about ways to integrate the app into your work order processes and procedures, as well as see a detailed guide of how to use the app on your phone or tablet.

HUD has announced funding opportunities for cities, counties/parishes, and other units of local government, and certain States and Native American Tribes to implement actions to maximize the number of children under the age of six protected from lead.

Today the U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued for public comment “Action Levels for Lead in Food Intended for Babies and Young Children: Draft Guidance for Industry.” As the agency outlined in Closer to Zero, we expect over time for this guidance, together with other activities, to result in industry progressively reducing levels of lead in foods to as low as possible. The draft guidance announced today supports the FDA’s goal of reducing dietary exposure to lead, arsenic, cadmium and mercury, and the associated health effects, while maintaining access to nutritious foods.

Today, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced the appointment of 28 members, 14 new and 14 returning, to the Children’s Health Protection Advisory Committee (CHPAC). The Agency also announced the next meeting of the committee, to be held on December 1-2, 2022. Members of the public can register for the meeting now.

“As a former member of the Children’s Health Protection Advisory Committee, I know how important this committee’s input is to ensuring that our children—our future leaders—have clean air to breathe, safe water to drink, and a healthy environment where they can live, grow, and thrive,” said EPA Deputy Administrator Janet McCabe. “It is an honor to welcome such a diverse group of expert members to this crucial panel, and we look forward to receiving their recommendations to advance children’s health protections.”

Center for Early Lifestage Vulnerabilities to Environmental Stressors - Cumulative Health Impacts for Children in Underserved Rural Agricultural Communities in the United States Request for Applications

Opens: November 10, 2022; Closes: January 11, 2023 Apply Here

Informational Webinar: December 6, 2022; 1:00 p.m. ET Register Here

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is seeking applications to establish a research center to better understand the cumulative health impacts of early lifestage exposures to multiple pollutants in conjunction with other relevant non-chemical stressors in underserved, rural agricultural communities in the United States.

Protecting children’s health is one of EPA’s top priorities. Children are often more vulnerable to pollutants than adults due to differences in behavior and biology which can lead to greater exposure as well as unique windows of susceptibility during development. Exposures to chemicals, along with other environmental stressors such as poverty, limited access to services, and changing conditions found in our everyday environment, may pose developmental and life-long health risks to children. Children in underserved, rural agricultural communities may be exposed to agricultural chemicals through ambient air, water, and soil, in addition to exposure to these chemicals via take-home and occupational routes (for adolescents). Research is needed to investigate adverse cumulative health impacts from exposures to chemical and non-chemical stressors for children in these communities in order to effectively reduce early childhood and lifetime health disparities.

The Center application should include two individual research projects involving multidisciplinary teams with appropriate expertise to address the two research subtopics identified below.

1. Characterize cumulative health impacts of early lifestage (prenatal and childhood including adolescence) exposure to pollutants in underserved, rural agricultural communities.
2. Propose a cumulative impact assessment approach or method that will lead to potentially effective interventions or decisions to reduce exposures and mitigate the adverse health outcomes from the chemical and non-chemical stressors being investigated for early lifestages (prenatal and childhood up to adolescence) in underserved, rural agricultural communities in the United States.

If you are interested in potentially serving on the external scientific Peer Review Panel, rather than applying, please send your contact information and a copy of your resume to Chris Rea (rea.chris.l@epa.gov) by 12/31/22.

A Proclamation on National Preparedness Month, 2022.

Presented by:
CAPT Heidi Blanck, Ph.D., Chief, Obesity Prevention and Control Branch, Division of Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Obesity (DNPAO), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)

Introduction by:
Bramaramba Kowtha, M.S., RDN, LDN, Health Scientist, ODP

Registration:
Registration is required and open to the public

About:
CDC’s Division of Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Obesity (DNPAO) supports the use of timely data for decision making and spreading evidence-based interventions in both clinical and community settings to support healthy child growth. Dr. Heidi Blanck will discuss recent data modernization efforts in the use of electronic health records and community data to advance child health programming and obesity prevention and management through population-health efforts. She will also discuss data advances and implementation science frameworks that are being used to bring more proven interventions to venues that serve children from lower-income households. Dr. Blanck will focus on interventions that are acceptable to implementors and families, and that help address behavioral risk factors and social determinants of obesity. Highlighted resources will include available statistical software resources, data governance models, privacy-preserving technology, and proof-of-concept collaborative applied research projects across the United States that can support healthy child growth.

Join us for a virtual public workshop to discuss the state of science and knowledge about children's environmental health. The workshop will bring together experts in epidemiology, toxicology, dose response methodology, and exposure science to explore advancements in understanding the health effects from early life exposures to environmental hazards with effects across the life course, and implications for future priorities. The workshop will feature invited presentations and discussion that may include:

• The state of knowledge on the vulnerabilities of different lifestages (prenatal, infancy, early childhood, adolescence) to environmental exposures.
• Science areas that may be important to advance our understanding of vulnerabilities across early lifestages, including exposures of people of childbearing age.
• Opportunities that may be critical to address and improve consistent application of children's environmental health in risk assessment and regulatory decision making based on existing science.
• Implications of the state of the science to improve policies and programs to protect children's environmental health.

This virtual workshop is scheduled to take place August 1-4, with half-day sessions starting mid-day Eastern Time.

Register Now

The Action Collaborative on Disaster Research will converne a symposium of government, academic, clinical and community stakeholders, along with subject matter experts, to scope perspectives, information and scientific needs related to disasters affecting child populations. Meeting discussions will support high-level prioritization of pediatric disaster science foci; opportunities for alignment and synergy of scientific efforts to collective and effectively advance pediatric disaster science; and set the stage for capacity building around evidence-based practices and scientific discovery to improve outcomes of children.

Registration

To commemorate the 25th Anniversary of the landmark Executive Order Protection of Children from Environmental Health Risks and Safety Risks signed in 1997, today the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced the award of the first four cooperative agreements under the Children’s Healthy Learning Environments in Low-income and/or Minority Communities competition. This $2 million grant program competition was funded by the American Rescue Plan (ARP) to support children’s environmental health by building capacity through activities that identify and address disproportionate environmental or public health harms and risks in underserved communities. Read more.

Each June, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Office of Lead Hazard Control and Healthy Homes (OLHCHH) recognizes National Healthy Homes Month. The 2022 theme — “A Healthy Home @ Any Age” — highlights the relevance of healthy homes principles to any resident, of any age — from children to seniors — in a home of any age. The OLHCHH invites current, former, and prospective* grantees, as well as housing, health, and environmental stakeholders and partners, to participate in five free, public webinars in June. These webinars will cover the importance and contributions of the OLHCHH grant programs to reducing children’s home-based sources of exposure to lead, allergy-inducing substances, pesticides, radon, and other home contaminants, and the Office’s technical assistance and regulatory support for reducing children’s lead exposure in HUD’s housing assistance programs. Webinars will highlight grantee approaches and feature some of the challenges grantees have faced and solutions they have developed during the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition, presenters will provide insights on implementing healthy homes concepts including lessons learned in doing so. Each webinar will include a live Q&A segment.

The National Healthy Homes Month webinars are presented through a partnership between the OLHCHH and the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture’s Healthy Homes Partnership. Webinar times and topics include:

• June 1, 11:00 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. ET: Welcome to National Healthy Homes Month 2022
• June 7, 2:00 - 3:00 p.m. ET: Overview of the Lead Safe Housing Rule and the Lead Disclosure Rule
• June 14, 2:00 - 3:00 p.m. ET: Creating Lead Safe and Healthy, Affordable Homes at Any Age (Part One)
• June 16, 2:00 - 3:00 p.m. ET: Insights on How to Be Successful Once You Have a Grant (Part Two)
• June 21, 2:00 - 3:00 p.m. ET: Overcoming Covid and Other Major Grant Program Stressors – Now and in the Future

To register and view detailed information on the webinars, see the webinar program.

To learn more about National Healthy Homes Month (NHHM) 2022, visit the NHHM webpage.

*OLHCCH encourages agencies and organizations to consider applying for funding. Notices of new funding opportunities will be published in Spring and Summer of 2022 at grants.gov.

Today on World Asthma Day, the National Institutes of Health reaffirms its commitment to biomedical research aimed at preventing the onset of asthma, understanding its underlying causes, and improving the treatment of it. This chronic airway disease, which is characterized by periodic worsening of inflammation that can make it hard to breathe, affects more than 25 million people in the United States, including more than 5 million children. Left untreated, it can be life-threatening. While scientists have made substantial progress in understanding asthma diagnosis, management, and treatment, therapies to permanently improve breathing for those who suffer from asthma remain elusive. Researchers around the globe are working steadily toward this goal while they seek to better understand and find new ways to manage the disease. They also are continuing research on the underlying causes of disparities in the incidence, care, and prevention of the disease. On the heels of recently updated management and treatment guidelines, researchers anticipate a brighter future for people living with asthma.

Details: The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today issued draft action levels for lead in single-strength (ready to drink) apple juice and other single-strength juices and juice blends. This action is intended to reduce the potential for negative health effects from dietary exposure to lead, and supports the agency’s Closer to Zero action plan that sets forth the FDA’s science-based approach to reducing exposure to toxic elements in foods. This action is part of the FDA’s whole of government approach that includes working with federal partners, including the President’s Task Force on Environmental Health Risks and Safety Risks to Children.

The measurement of indoor carbon dioxide concentrations has been used for many years to assess and control building ventilation rates, as well as to characterize indoor air quality. Over the years these applications of indoor CO2 monitoring have been misunderstood, despite the publication of technical papers and guidance documents and the organization of conference sessions in an attempt to reduce some of the confusion. There is renewed interest in such applications of CO2 measurement in the context of airborne infectious disease control.

This presentation will review the application of indoor CO2 monitoring to building ventilation and IAQ, and discuss several issues regarding these measurements and their interpretation.

his presentation will be given for all audiences interested in indoor CO2 monitoring, including school facility managers.

Register here: CO2 Monitoring to Manage Building Ventilation.

On October 1, EPA released our new Draft FY 2022-2025 Strategic Plan. The Draft Plan presents seven strategic goals focused on protecting human health and the environment and four cross-agency strategies that describe the essential ways EPA will work to carry out our mission. The plan includes a cross-agency strategy requiring the consideration of the health of children at all life stages and other vulnerable populations in all of EPA’s work. Currently, EPA is seeking comment on the Draft Plan from Tribes, states, local governments, industry, the academic community, non-governmental organizations, individual citizens, and all other interested parties.

The Indoor Environments Division at EPA is supporting this webinar hosted by the Institute for Tribal Environmental Professionals (ITEP).

This ITEP webinar is designed for school administrators and other interested schools stakeholders in tribal communities. It will review the findings of a recent report from John Hopkins Center for Health Security that considers the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on children, families, and educators and summarizes current ventilation guidelines.

The presenter is Paula Olsiewski, John Hopkins Center for Health Security, John Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, a pioneering leader in policy and scientific research programs in the microbiology and chemistry of indoor environments.

Register here: Healthy Tribal Schools: Reopening Tribal Schools and Buildings.

National Heat Safety Awareness Day is May 31, 2021. The Task Force website provides resources aimed at protecting children’s health from extreme heat.

May 23-29, 2021 is Health and Safe Swimming Week. The Task Force has a number of resources for parents and others to help ensure that children stay safe while spending additional time in swimming pools and other bodies of water during the summer months. Similarly, warmer weather provides more time for children to be outdoors, but extreme heat can pose a serious risk to children while playing, particularly children athletes.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced upcoming public listening sessions and roundtables to ensure that communities and stakeholders have the opportunity to provide their perspectives to the agency on protections from lead in drinking water. The goal of public engagement is to obtain further input on EPA’s Lead and Copper Rule Revisions (LCRR), including from individuals and communities that are most at-risk ofexposure to lead in drinking water.

Virtual public listening sessions will be held on April 28, 2021, and May 5, 2021, from 10:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m., eastern daylight time. Those interested in speaking can signup for a 3-minute speaking slot on EPA’s website at: www.epa.gov/safewater.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) has released a new initiative, Closer to Zero, that identifies actions the agency will take to reduce exposure to toxic elements in foods eaten by babies and young children to lowest levels possible. FDA has prioritized babies and young children because their smaller body sizes and metabolism make them more vulnerable to the harmful effects of these contaminants.

NIMH Special Event for Autism Awareness Month: An Afternoon of Comedy with Asperger's Are Us
The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) Office of Autism Research Coordination (OARC) is pleased to invite you to our annual special event to recognize National Autism Awareness Month. This year we are hosting Asperger’s Are Us, the first comedy troupe composed entirely of people diagnosed with Asperger syndrome (autism).

This webinar will examine implications of housing for public health through both the life course and socioecological perspectives, demonstrating why housing access and quality should be considered at every stage of life and at the individual, family, community and policy levels.

Each year National Lead Poisoning Prevention Week (NLPPW) is a call to bring together individuals, organizations, industry, and state and local governments to raise awareness of lead poisoning prevention and reduce childhood exposure to lead. This year’s NLPPW highlights the many ways parents can reduce their children's exposure to lead and prevent the serious health effects of lead. EPA, along with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), works to raise awareness, provide resources, and encourage preventive actions to decrease childhood lead exposure during the week and beyond.

• More information: National Lead Poisoning Prevention Week

EPA Releases New Curriculum to Protect Children in Indian Country and Communities from Lead Exposure

As part of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) celebration of Children’s Health Month, the agency released a curriculum to help tribes and all communities protect children from potential lead exposure.

The Lead Awareness in Indian Country: Keeping our Children Healthy! curriculum is a series of four modules which include lesson plans, worksheets, key messages, presentation slides, and kids' activity sheets that community leaders and other instructors can use to improve public awareness of the dangers associated with lead exposure and promote preventative actions.

The design balances diverse community backgrounds, technical information and localized knowledge to allow instructors an opportunity to plan and deliver unique messages within each structured module.

The curriculum improves the understanding of lead’s potential impacts on children’s health and cultural practices and encourages actions that can be taken to reduce and/or prevent childhood lead exposure.

Healthy Homes, Green Cleaning, Indoor Air Quality and your Health: Tips and tools to keep indoors safe and healthy
Did you know that homes may have hidden environmental risks that may affect our health? What are some of these environmental risks? Whether you live in an apartment, townhome or single-family home, an old home, or are building or renovating a new home, there are many ways to protect your health by understanding hidden risks and taking action to keep your indoor environment safe. The tips and tools shared in this webinar will be especially important to you and your family when you must stay indoors for extended periods of time. You’ll get information and tools to take action to improve your home indoor environment.

• Register here: Healthy Homes, Green Cleaning, Indoor Air Quality and Your Health.

EPA Announces $4.3 Million for Tribes to Reduce Lead in Drinking Water in Schools

• On July 30, 2020, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced a new grant program to help protect children in tribal communities from lead in drinking water at schools and childcare facilities.
• Authorized by the Water Infrastructure Improvements of the Nation (WIIN) Act, EPA is making $4.3 million available to support the Lead Testing in School and Child Care Program Drinking Water Tribal Grant Program. Grantees will use the EPA’s 3Ts for Reducing Lead in Drinking Water guidance to implement lead testing programs and develop monitoring, maintenance and/or sampling plans that protect children from lead exposure now and in the future.

EPA Announces Lead Free Final Rule

• On July 29, 2020 the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced a final rule to reduce lead in plumbing materials used in public water systems, homes, schools and other facilities.
• The Lead-Free final rule significantly limits the lead content allowed in plumbing materials (e.g., pipes, fittings, and fixtures) used in new construction and replacement of existing plumbing.
• The new rule reduces the percentage of lead content allowed in these materials from eight percent to 0.25 percent in accordance with the Reduction of Lead in Drinking Water Act. The final rule also requires that manufacturers or importers certify that their products meet the requirements using a consistent verification process.
• This new rule will reduce lead in drinking water and assure that states, manufacturers, inspectors and consumers have a common understanding of “Lead Free” plumbing.

Attend this webinar to hear the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) discuss their collaboration and

• The history, development and evidence base of the Home Characteristics and Asthma Triggers Checklist.
• How a trained home visitor can use the checklist to help find common asthma triggers in homes and discuss ways to reduce and remove triggers to improve health.
• The development of the NEW Home Characteristics and Asthma Triggers Checklist training module.
• Considerations for using the checklist in a virtual setting.

Additional information can be found at: Asthma Community Network - Event Information 

Research to Action: Assessing and Addressing Community Exposures to Environmental Contaminants (R01 Clinical Trial Optional): RFA-ES-20-002

This Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) encourages multidisciplinary projects to investigate the potential health risks of environmental exposures of concern to a community and to implement an environmental public health action plan based on research findings. Projects supported under this program are expected to employ community-engaged research methods to not only conduct research but also to seamlessly translate research findings into public health action. This announcement reflects NIEHS goals in bi-directional communications and in supporting research to address environmental health disparities and environmental justice concerns. The Research to Action program is part of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) “Partnerships for Environmental Public Health” (PEPH) network .

Update on Selected Topics in Asthma Management: A Report from the National Asthma Education and Prevention Program Coordinating Committee (NAEPPCC) Expert Panel Working Group. A Notice requesting public comments on this draft report has been published in the Federal Register. The draft document and instructions on how to submit comments are available online. Comments are due by January 17, 2020