https://mailchi.mp/publichealthmdc/public-health-quarterly-newsletter-973962?e=e734e35974
| Lots Going on in our Immunization Program! Promoting Back to School Shots CDC Director Dr. Mandy Cohen visited our South Madison Clinic in August to promote back to school shots for kids. Dr. Cohen’s visit came just as we released new data on Dane County students’ immunization status. While data showed that more than 9 in 10 Dane County students met all minimum immunization requirements in 2022-2023, more Dane County students were behind or waived one or more immunizations in that school year compared to the previous year. To increase accessibility to shots for this new school year, we’re partnering with SSM Health, GHC, UW-Health, and Madison Metropolitan School District to offer free vaccines at schools on 6 dates this fall. |
| Fall 2023 COVID Vaccines are Here! CDC recommends everyone age 6 months and older get a fall 2023 COVID vaccine. The vaccination provides protection against severe illness, hospitalization, and death among everyone, but especially among people most at risk, including adults 65 and older and people who are immunocompromised. You are eligible if it has been at least 2 months since your last COVID vaccination. Where you can get vaccinated Due to the end of the COVID emergency declaration, manufacturers are charging for vaccines, but you should still be able to get the vaccine free with insurance or through us, at Public Health Madison & Dane County: If you have health insurance Most insurers cover the cost of vaccination, so if you have insurance, your vaccine should be free. Keep in mind you may have to use a pharmacy that accepts your insurance. Check with your insurance provider if you’re not sure. Most clinics and area pharmacies are offering the vaccine, though some may not have received their full shipment yet. Visit vaccines.gov to find a vaccinator near you. If you don’t have health insurance We can only vaccinate these groups of people, and the vaccination is free: People who do not have health insurance People whose health insurance does not cover vaccinations Children (6 months to 18 years) who are on BadgerCare, are eligible for BadgerCare, or who are Native American or Alaskan Native Visit our website, publichealthmdc.com/appt, to see clinic hours and book an appointment. Testing, What to Do If You’re Sick, and Answers to Common Questions We’ve written up a whole blog post, Your Fall 2023 COVID Cheat Sheet, with information and links on free rapid tests, what to do if you’re sick, and answers to common questions, like “How long are you contagious when you have COVID?” |
| New Resources for Preparing for Disasters and Emergencies Flooding, an extended power outage, a new infectious virus, and poor air quality from forest forest fires thousands of miles away. These public health emergencies have affected Dane County in the past five years. While we’ve responded to all of them, remember we all play a role to prepare for an emergency, stay safe while it happens, and recover after the emergency ends. We explain simple things you can do to prepare in our blog post and on our new emergency response webpages, and encourage you to sign up to get our public health emergency updates via email! |
| Providing Funding to Community Organizations Healthy Communities Fund We’re currently accepting proposals from people, communities, and organizations who work to address health and racial inequity in Dane County. A total of $14,000 is available. Applications are due no later than October 29, 2023. Learn more about this opportunity on our new Funding Opportunities webpage. PFAS Outreach Funding This summer, we offered grants to community organizations who can help connect with people about PFAS. We awarded a total of over $32,000 to four projects: East Madison Community Center Catholic Multicultural Center The Hmong Institute Kennedy Heights Community Center You can learn what these organizations will be doing with their funding on our new webpage! Learn About Future Funding Want to be in the loop for future funding opportunities? Bookmark our new Funding Opportunities webpage and check it often. We list current funds right at the top. Get an email when we have a new funding opportunity: Visit our webpage and choose “Public Health Funding Opportunities” under “Special Topics.” |
| Quick Notes |
| Community Health Assessment Released We released our 2023 Community Health Assessment (CHA) in July. A CHA is an analysis that identifies the health needs, concerns, and resources within our community. Along with our partners, we conducted it through community engagement, data collection and analysis, working closely with our Steering Committee. We’ll use the insights from the CHA to develop our Community Health Improvement Plan. Hot Temps Extended Beach Monitoring Season Unseasonably warm temperatures in early September led us to extend the beach season past Labor Day weekend, but we’re now officially done monitoring beach water quality for the year. There are many factors that contribute to the water quality of our lakes, and there are days where we have to close a beach for swimming. This fall and winter, you can help protect our lake water quality by keeping leaves out of gutters and limiting how much salt you put on icy sidewalks and driveways. Learn how! Summer Outreach We had a great summer at festivals and events, spreading the word about health and safety! Here are a few shots of us out and about in the community. |
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