Strategies

What Works for Health includes evidence-informed strategies to create communities where everyone can thrive.

37 Strategies
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Minimum drinking age laws

Maintain the current legal age when an individual can purchase alcoholic beverages; currently 21 years in all states

Evidence Rating:
Scientifically Supported
  • Alcohol and Drug Use

Minimum tobacco age laws

Minimum legal tobacco age (MLTA) laws specify the legal age to purchase or publicly consume tobacco products, including cigarettes, cigars, and e-cigarettes

Evidence Rating:
Scientifically Supported
  • Tobacco Use

Naloxone education & distribution programs

Distribute Naloxone to trained community members and first responders to reverse opioid overdoses

Evidence Rating:
Scientifically Supported
  • Alcohol and Drug Use

Prescription drug monitoring programs (PDMPs)

Use databases, housed in state agencies, to track prescribing and dispensing of Schedule II, III, IV, and V drugs and other controlled substances

Evidence Rating:
Some Evidence
  • Alcohol and Drug Use

Responsible beverage server training (RBS/RBST)

Educate owners, managers, servers, and sellers at alcohol establishments about strategies to avoid illegally selling alcohol to underage youth or intoxicated patrons

Evidence Rating:
Some Evidence
  • Alcohol and Drug Use

School-based tobacco prevention skill-building programs

Teach students personal and social skills to avoid tobacco use; led by teachers, health educators, or students in elementary schools, middle schools, or high schools

Evidence Rating:
Some Evidence
  • Tobacco Use

Secondhand smoke education interventions

Use counseling, informational materials, etc. to inform smokers and non-smokers of the harms of secondhand smoke and encourage them to implement home smoking bans

Evidence Rating:
Mixed Evidence
  • Tobacco Use

Smoke-free policies for indoor areas

Implement private sector rules or public sector regulations that prohibit smoking indoors or restrict it to designated, often outdoor, areas

Evidence Rating:
Scientifically Supported
  • Tobacco Use

Smoke-free policies for outdoor areas

Implement private sector rules or public sector regulations that prohibit smoking outdoors or restrict it to designated areas

Evidence Rating:
Some Evidence
  • Tobacco Use