Strategies

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

Advocacy for victims of intimate partner violence

Work to partner with victims/survivors of intimate partner violence, help them with safety plans, and link them to community services (e.g., legal, housing, financial advice, emergency shelter, etc.)

Evidence Rating:

Insufficient Evidence

Alcohol access restrictions in public places

Restrict alcohol availability and use at sporting events, other public events (e.g., concerts and street fairs) and in public spaces such as parks and beaches

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Expert Opinion

Alternative fuels initiatives

Support alternative fuel and vehicle use via financial incentives (e.g., tax benefits, rebates, etc.), mandates (e.g., consumption targets or renewable fuel standards), research and development investments, etc.

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Expert Opinion

Baby bonds

Establish publicly funded investment accounts for every newborn, accessible at age 18

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Expert Opinion

Bridge programs for hard-to-employ adults

Provide basic skills (e.g., reading, math, writing, English language, or soft skills) and industry-specific training with other supports; also called occupationally contextualized basic education programs

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Expert Opinion

CAFO regulations

Establish local regulations for confined animal feeding operations (CAFOs) that address location, size, facility management, and pollution contributions to complement U.S. EPA regulations

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Expert Opinion

Campus alcohol bans

Restrict alcohol consumption anywhere on a college or university campus or only in specific areas (e.g., residence halls)

Evidence Rating:

Insufficient Evidence

Career pathways programs

Provide occupation-specific training for low-skilled individuals in high-growth industries, with education and supports, usually with stackable credentials and work experience opportunities

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Expert Opinion

Carpool & rideshare programs

Help participants share transportation via informal arrangements between individuals, formally arranged ridesharing programs, or other ride-matching services

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Expert Opinion

Certificates of employability

Issue certificates of employability to individuals with criminal convictions who have met pre-specified standards of rehabilitation; also called certificates of relief, reentry, good conduct, rehabilitation, recovery, etc.

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Expert Opinion

Child development accounts

Build assets through child development accounts (CDAs) with contributions from a sponsoring organization, such as government agencies or nonprofits, and family, friends; also called children’s savings accounts (CSAs)

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Expert Opinion

Child tax credit expansion

Expand federal or state child tax credits by increasing credit amounts, making credits refundable, decreasing or eliminating the earnings threshold, or creating a fully refundable supplement

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Expert Opinion

Community arts programs

Support locally-based visual, media, and performing arts initiatives for children and adults; also called participatory arts programs

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Community centers

Provide space to promote socializing among community members and offer programs and services such as recreational or educational activities, counseling or support services

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Expert Opinion

Community Development Financial Institutions

Support financial institutions providing services to underserved and disadvantaged communities

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Expert Opinion

Community kitchens for food processing

Establish shared kitchen spaces that support licensed, commercial food processing and connect specialty food processors, farmers, and others who produce value-added goods

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Expert Opinion

Community kitchens for nutrition education

Use existing kitchen spaces for community members to share knowledge, resources, and labor to prepare, cook, and consume food, often with nutrition education provided for participants experiencing food insecurity

Evidence Rating:

Insufficient Evidence

Community organizing in public health

Advance public health by using community organizing methods, such as developing leadership, campaigning, and building power to influence decisions, agendas, and worldviews, by collaborating with community organizing groups to use these methods, or both

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Expert Opinion

Community supported agriculture (CSA)

Establish partnerships between farmers and consumers in which consumers purchase a share of a farm’s products in advance

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Expert Opinion

Community weight loss challenges

Support temporary programs that work to energize participants to lose weight via prizes, often combined with education, weight status and food intake tracking, regular check-ins, and group support

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Expert Opinion

Community-based doulas

Provide culturally appropriate non-medical care and support throughout pregnancy, birth, and postpartum to birthing people at higher risk of poor outcomes and underserved by the medical community

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Expert Opinion

Consumer participation in health care governance

Involve consumers in health care governance via roles on governing boards, advisory committees, or shorter-term special projects

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Expert Opinion

DARE to be You

Provide education and training sessions with parent-child activities and family meals for youth, parents, and care providers

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Expert Opinion

Designated driver promotion programs

Encourage use of designated drivers via population-based mass media campaigns, incentive programs based in drinking establishments, and other efforts

Evidence Rating:

Insufficient Evidence

E-cigarette regulations

Regulate use of e-cigarettes via age, sales and marketing restrictions, expanded smoke-free air policies in public and private worksites and designated spaces, etc.

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Expert Opinion

Electronic Benefit Transfer payment at farmers markets

Enable farmers markets to accept EBT, the electronic payment system of debit cards used to issue and redeem Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits

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Expert Opinion

Faith community nursing

Position registered nurses within a parish or similar faith community, or in a health care system to serve as a liaison to congregations; also called parish nursing or congregational nursing

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Financial incentives for new nursing faculty

Offer loan repayment, tuition assistance, competitive academic salaries, etc. to students who teach in nursing programs after completing an advanced degree

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Expert Opinion

Food buying clubs & co-ops

Offer opportunities for group purchase and distribution of selected grocery items, generally at a reduced price

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Expert Opinion

Food hubs

Support businesses or organizations that aggregate, distribute, and market local and regional food products (e.g., fresh fruits and vegetables, meat, dairy, grains, and prepared items)

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Expert Opinion

Fruit & vegetable gleaning initiatives

Gather food left in fields after a primary harvest, food in fields where harvesting is not profitable, or excess produce from orchards, packing houses, urban agriculture sites, etc.

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Expert Opinion

Georgia Fatherhood Program

Provide employment-based services for non-custodial fathers who pay child support and experience a job loss or a decrease in income

Evidence Rating:

Insufficient Evidence

Good Samaritan drug overdose laws

Provide immunity from arrest, charges, or prosecution for drug possession or paraphernalia when individuals experiencing or witnessing drug overdose summon emergency services

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Expert Opinion

Healthy foods at catered events

Provide more fresh fruits and vegetables, smaller portions, low fat, and reduced sodium or reduced sugar food options and other healthy foods at catered events

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Expert Opinion

HIV and STI interventions coordinated with work, vocational training, or sports for youth

Coordinate efforts to reduce risky sexual behavior among adolescents with work, vocational training, or sports

Evidence Rating:

Insufficient Evidence

HOME Investment Partnership Program

Provide grants to states and localities to fund activities that build, buy, or rehabilitate affordable housing for rent or homeownership, or provide direct rental assistance to households with low incomes

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Expert Opinion

Hospital wristband color standardization

Establish national standards for the colors of patient wristbands used to alert health care providers about specific conditions such as allergies or elevated fall risk

Evidence Rating:

Insufficient Evidence

Housing mediation services

Facilitate mediation between tenants and landlords to resolve conflict and prevent eviction

Evidence Rating:

Insufficient Evidence

Housing reparations

Apologize for discriminatory housing policies; increase subsidies, financing, and paths to homeownership for people of color; and invest in systematically disadvantaged neighborhoods

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Expert Opinion

Housing trust funds

Support funds that help create or maintain affordable housing, subsidize rental housing, and assist homebuyers with low incomes and non-profit housing developers

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Expert Opinion

Human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine education

Inform adolescents, young adults, and parents about HPV and its consequences, as well as the benefits of vaccination, via videos, printed materials, online content, or in-person efforts

Evidence Rating:

Insufficient Evidence

Intergenerational communities

Establish policies, plans, and programs that meet the needs of all residents of a community, especially children and older adults, and promote interaction and cooperation between individuals of different generations

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Expert Opinion

J-1 physician visa waivers

Expand use of J-1 physician visa waivers for foreign national physicians who have trained in the U.S. and will serve patients in designated Health Professional Shortage Areas (HPSAs)

Evidence Rating:

Insufficient Evidence

Job-sharing programs

Offer flexible working arrangements, allowing the duties of a single full-time position to be covered by two part-time employees

Evidence Rating:

Insufficient Evidence

Keg registration laws

Require wholesalers or retailers to record an identification number for beer kegs and a purchaser’s information (e.g., name and address, date of birth, etc.) at the time of purchase

Evidence Rating:

Insufficient Evidence

Land return for tribal restitution

Return the rights to land, property, and resources to Native people as part of policies and initiatives that promote tribal sovereignty

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Expert Opinion

Long-term care employee compensation

Increase wages and benefits for personal or home care workers, nurse aides, and others who provide direct care to patients in long-term care (LTC) settings

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Expert Opinion

Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP)

Provide funds to households with low incomes to meet home energy needs, especially for households with children, older adults, or individuals with disabilities

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Expert Opinion

Mass media campaigns against underage drinking

Use television, radio, print, and social media efforts to increase awareness of underage drinking and its consequences

Evidence Rating:

Insufficient Evidence

Mass media campaigns for physical activity

Provide messages that support physical activity to large and broad audiences using television, social media, radio, billboards, newspapers, and other print media

Evidence Rating:

Insufficient Evidence

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