Commissioners Proclaim Public Health Week in Morris County

Published on March 25, 2021

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April 5 - April 11, 2021 Dedicated to Observing & Adopting Healthy Lifestyle Habits

The Morris County Board of County Commissioners adopted a proclamation last night recognizing National Public Health Week 2021, which will be celebrated from April 5 through April 11 this year, continuing an annual, national tradition that began 26 years ago.

It was March 13, 1995 when then-President William J. Clinton issued the first federal proclamation establishing the first week of April as National Public Health Week to promote healthy lifestyles and to heighten awareness of the many benefits good health brings. The American Public Health Association (APHA) has annually sponsored the week’s observance, educating the public, policymakers and public health professionals about issues important to improving the public’s health.

The theme set for this year’s event is “Building Bridges to Better Health.”

The Morris County proclamation cited national data showing life expectancy in the United States dropped from 2014 to 2017, marking the longest sustained decline in the nation since the Great Recession. Although that trend has improved, studies cited by the Morris County Office of Public Health indicate the United States has a lower life expectancy than comparable countries and that six of ten adults have a chronic disease and four of ten have two or more chronic diseases

The Office of Public Health also cited data showing alcoholism, obesity and tobacco-use are the primary cause of seven of ten deaths annually in the United States.

The U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, in its “Healthy People 2020” initiative, continued to affirm the importance of promoting public health awareness and for the public to better understand the determinants of health, disease, and disability. The Morris County Commissioners’ proclamation recognized public health professionals for helping communities to prevent, prepare for, withstand and recover from health threats, including bioterrorism, infectious disease outbreaks such as COVID-19, preventable diseases, natural disasters and disasters caused by human activity.

The proclamation urged all Morris County residents to help family, friends, neighbors, co-workers and our leaders “to better understand the value of adopting healthy lifestyle habits as we continue ‘Building Bridges to Better Health’ throughout this great nation.”

 

 

 

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