Partnering to use law as a tool for protecting and promoting the the public's health

Law is an essential tool in protecting and promoting the public's health. Legal mechanisms such as laws, regulations, and policies have been instrumental in achieving improvements in community health – reducing tobacco use and exposure, reducing exposure to lead, reducing injuries related to motor vehicles, increasing vaccination rates. However, the challenge of improving health outcomes through the promotion of evidence-based laws and policies that reach legislators and policymakers remains a perennial one. Simply achieving the legal authority through statute, regulation, and policy to enforce public health is only a first step. Equally important is the ability of practitioners and community advocates to be trained in law-related skills. Public health officials and their counsel need the resources and technical assistance necessary to interpret the law in their region, to understand the legal issues, and promote policies and laws that will improve health. Achieving these goals requires a partnership based on shared objectives among foundations, lawyers, public health officials, academia and community organizations.

The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation has taken significant steps toward advancing the use of law as a fundamental tool in promoting the public's health by developing two complementary programs in public health law. This session will provide attendees with an overview of the Foundation's recent strategic investments in public health law, identify how we partner with and provide technical assistance to researchers, practitioners, and advocacy groups to advance public health, and provide a general overview on how law can be a useful tool for community health planning and policy development.