MONTGOMERY, Ala. – In 2024, the dedicated employees of the Alabama Department of Public Health (ADPH) came together to face the unique challenges that lie in fulfilling the Department’s vision of “Healthy People. Healthy Communities. Healthy Alabama.”
In a challenging year that included the unexpected loss of facilities, the need to strengthen an overstretched workforce and finding ways to provide services for the underserved, ADPH staff continued to succeed in its mission of promoting, protecting and improving the health of all Alabama citizens.
Here are a few highlights:
ALL Kids Insurance Program provides coverage for nearly 100,000 children
Children need to be healthy to reach their full potential. To stay healthy, children need access to regular checkups, vision care and dental care, as well as the ability to get medical attention if they get sick or injured. The ALL Kids Insurance Program provides low-cost, comprehensive coverage for eligible children under the age of 19. In addition to regular checkups, benefits include immunizations, prescriptions, mental health and substance abuse services, and more.
The ALL Kids Program, which marked its 27th anniversary in 2024, has enabled over 94,000 Alabama children to access regular health care.
Grant helps boost public health workforce, services
In 2022, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) implemented the Public Health Infrastructure Grant (PHIG), a 5-year investment to support public health infrastructure needs across the United States. Over 100 health departments received funding through this grant, including ADPH. Through this $5 billion investment, the CDC hopes to build a more resilient public health system to face future health threats.
ADPH’s Workforce Development (WFD) Program, under the Office of Human Resources, directs the use of PHIG funds. In addition to improving the department’s data systems, the WFD is developing and implementing strategies to focus on recruitment and retention of public health workers.
In a recent edition of the Public Health Review Morning Edition podcast, State Health Officer Dr. Scott Harris talked about the tremendous impact PHIG funds have had on ADPH’s recruitment process:
“PHIG has been a tremendous success for us. We have found quality candidates we would never have found otherwise.”
He added that bringing in new employees to shore up understaffed programs has aided in retaining experienced staff members.
Cancer Division continues support of “Operation Wipe Out” cervical cancer campaign
Alabama continues to be the first and only state in the nation to announce an action plan to eliminate cervical cancer as a public health problem. This effort, called Operation Wipe Out, is a call to action to ensure women, parents, health care providers and leaders know that cervical cancer can be stopped in three steps: HPV vaccination for boys and girls beginning at age 9, regular HPV/Pap tests for women age 21 and older, and follow-up to the doctor if the HPV/Pap test has abnormal results.
During 2024, Operation Wipe Out efforts were featured in the Wall Street Journal, the International Rotary Magazine, the Presidential Cancer Moonshot Initiative, the Centers for Disease Control and the Southeast HPV Roundtable. In addition, ADPH has been asked to share our work with over 15 states and several nations. As we enter 2025, we look forward to collaborating with the Rotary Club of Birmingham and the University of Alabama at Birmingham to host a statewide Operation Wipe Out Summit in Birmingham and showcase efforts to eliminate cervical cancer throughout the year.
More information on Operation Wipe Out is available below.
- Operation Wipe Out Cervical Cancer: Alabama launches statewide action plan to eliminate cervical cancer
- We can end Cervical Cancer in our lifetime. Alabama’s women need only take three steps to WIPE OUT this deadly cancer.
Butler County Health Department quickly restores services after devastating fire
On June 30, the Butler County Health Department building in Greenville caught fire and was destroyed. Fortunately, the building was empty and no one was injured in the incident.
County and district staff immediately went to work securing temporary work locations for employees and making arrangements so that client services could continue with minimal interruption. The Jefferson County Department of Health was an integral partner early in the process, providing a mobile unit that was set up in the parking lot of the Greenville location and used for clinical services.
By early September a modular unit was purchased and set up with full utilities and furnishings in the Greenville location’s parking lot. This is now the primary location for most client services, although the Environmental and Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) programs continue to operate at a second location.
It is expected to take up to 2 years to rebuild a new county health department facility.
Read more about the fire and the ongoing efforts to restore services in Butler County:
- Butler County Health Department announces opening of modular unit on Airport Road following fire
- Alabama’s Health (November 2024)
ADPH’s Bureau of Clinical Laboratories begins testing for two additional genetic disorders In newborns
- Pompe disease: a rare and potentially fatal genetic disorder caused by a deficiency of an enzyme resulting in the build-up of stored sugar, leading to severe muscle weakness.
- Muccopolysaccharidosis Type I (MPS I): a rare genetic disorder caused by a deficiency in an enzyme resulting in the buildup of toxic materials in cells.
The BCL is the sole provider of blood analysis of newborn screening in Alabama. Approximately 200 babies are identified each year with congenital disorders. These babies usually look and act healthy at birth, underscoring the importance of early screening and detection.
Visit Newborn Screening to learn more.
ADPH on Forbes list of America’s Best In-State Employers
In August, ADPH was honored to be listed as the third best place to work on the Forbes list of American’s Best-In-State Employers of 2024.
The list was built from the results of an independent survey from a sample of more than 160,000 employees working for companies employing at least 500 people within the U.S. Final scores were built upon two types of employee evaluations:
- Personal: Measuring employees’ willingness to recommend their employer to friends and family.
- Public: Measuring recommendations from friends and family members of employees, or members of the public working in the same industry.
Visit Forbes to learn more.
ADPH team aids in Hurricane Helene recovery efforts
On Sept. 26, the category 4 hurricane Helene made landfall on the Florida Gulf Coast. Its path carried it into the southern Appalachians, where it left unimaginable damage in its wake. Entire communities were swept away, billions of dollars’ worth of property was damaged, and hundreds of people lost their lives.
ADPH was proud to assemble an all-volunteer support team which traveled to North Carolina to assist in recovery efforts. The group, which included eight nurses and a safety officer, provided services in a mass care shelter.
See photos of the team in the November 2024 edition of Alabama’s Health.
ADPH’s Perinatal Program promotes the #ClearTheCrib challenge
In October, ADPH’s Perinatal Program once again promoted the #ClearTheCrib challenge. This social media initiative highlights the importance of maintaining a clear crib for babies to sleep in, which can help reduce the possibility of suffocation and other instances of Sudden Unexpected Infant Death.
Participants in the timed challenge shared videos of themselves quickly clearing cribs of potentially dangerous clutter like loose pillows, blankets, bumper pads and stuffed animals. Once the items were removed, the baby’s stunt double — a baby doll — was safely positioned in the crib.
Participants in this year’s round of videos included representatives from local high schools, hospitals and universities.
For links to #ClearTheCrib videos and more information on the challenge, visit ADPH’s Perinatal Program.
ADPH is proud of its employees who work tirelessly throughout the year, embracing and overcoming any and all challenges that come their way. These are but a few of the ways ADPH continues to strive for a healthy Alabama.
We at ADPH wish you all the health and happiness in 2025.
