Healhy Democracy Healthy PeopleDemocracy makes our communities more inclusive and healthier. Our votes affect health policy, clean air, housing, transit and funding for hospitals. Voting also helps people secure a seat at the table and feel more included within their communities.
When we’re healthier, we’re more likely to vote. And communities that vote experience better health.
Our new analysis compares 12 health indicators to how accessible voting is in each of the 50 states. States with more inclusive voting policies and greater levels of civic participation are healthier. Explore the Index. →
August, 2023: Join Healthy Democracy Healthy People, APHA, County Health Rankings and Roadmaps, NPHL, Vot-ER, and the Roundtable on Population Health Improvement for two Civic Health Month Virtual Sessions that will explore effective ways public health agencies and leaders are promoting a healthier inclusive democracy and a historical and political context for American democracy and voting policy.
June 20, 2023: Jeanne Ayers, executive director of Healthy Democracy Healthy People, and Aliya Bhatia, executive director of Vot-ER, joined hosts, Ericka Burroughs-Girardi and Beth Silver, for @County Health Rankings and Roadmaps’ new podcast, In Solidarity, for a conversation on the connections between civic health and thriving people and places. Listen to all four episodes.
March 13th, 2023: Jeanne Ayers, Healthy Democracy Healthy People’s Executive Director, and colleagues Nico Pronk and Ross Arena, published a commentary in the Lancet today. The article underscores the critical role of the health sector in promoting inclusive democratic practices and outlines several action steps that are necessary to strengthen civic and voter participation to advance health equity and population health outcomes. Read the full article here.
February 14, 2023: Minnesota State Senate Health and Human Services Committee held a hearing considering Senate Filing 3 and the provision that would allow the Department of Health and Human Services to implement automatic voter registration in programs like Medicaid. Our partners showed up and delivered supportive testimony. You can watch their testimony here.
January 12, 2023: Executive Director, Jeanne Ayers, joined colleagues Dr. Olivia Little, Jonathan Heller, Victoria Faust, Paula Tran, Marjory Givens, and Lili Farhang in publishing a framework for building power to advance health equity in the Journal for Public Health Management & Practice. You can read a blog post by Dr. Little here, and read the full article here.