2024 Bloomberg American Health Summit in Washington, D.C., to Spotlight Concrete Ways to Advance Public Health Amid Political Division

Newswise — The seventh Bloomberg American Health Summit organized by the Bloomberg American Health Initiative will bring together public health leaders, government officials, community organizations, researchers, and students to discuss evidence-based health policies that remain critical to advancing health in a politically divided country. The Summit will take place on December 3 in Washington, D.C.

Following the recent U.S. election, this year’s event, “Advancing Public Health in Uncertain Political Times,” will underscore the essential role of evidence and policy to address preventable illness that is holding back American life expectancy and progress. The Summit will also emphasize how fostering bipartisan collaboration, reforming policies that drive health disparities, and using innovative methods to enhance policy impact are essential to safeguard public health.

Keynote discussions will cover urgent topics including:

• Building bipartisan support for public health initiatives in 2025 and beyond
• Protecting reproductive health
• Defending the role of science in uncertain political times

Featured speakers include:

• Jerome Adams, Former U.S. Surgeon General & Director of Health Equity, Purdue University
• Xavier Becerra, Secretary, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
• Michael R. Bloomberg, Founder of Bloomberg L.P. and Bloomberg Philanthropies, WHO Global Ambassador for Noncommunicable Diseases and Injuries, and 108th mayor of New York City
• Cory Booker, U.S. Senator (D-NJ)
• Muriel Bowser, Mayor, Washington, D.C.
• Jonathan Capehart, Associate Editor, The Washington Post 
• Francis S. Collins, Distinguished Investigator, National Institutes of Health
• Ron Daniels, President, Johns Hopkins University
• Madlen Davies, Senior Editor, The Examination
• Rosa DeLauro, Congresswoman, U.S. House of Representatives, Connecticut
• Thomas Dobbs, Former Mississippi State Health Officer
• Jamie Ducharme, Health Correspondent, TIME Magazine
• John Feinblatt, President, Everytown for Gun Safety
• Brian Fitzpatrick, U.S. Representative, Pennsylvania 
• Cynthia Bissett Germanotta, President and Co-Founder, Born This Way Foundation
• Riley Griffin, Health Care Reporter, Bloomberg News
• Ellen J. MacKenzie, Dean, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
• Marion Nestle, Paulette Goddard Professor of Nutrition, Food Studies, and Public Health, Emerita, New York University
• Joshua M. Sharfstein, Director, Bloomberg American Health Initiative
• Michelle Spencer, Deputy Director, Bloomberg American Health Initiative
• Sheryl Gay Stolberg, Washington Correspondent, The New York Times
• Yasmin Tayag, Staff Writer, The Atlantic

Additional speakers will be announced and posted on the Summit’s website.

Members of the media are invited to attend the plenary from 9 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. in person or view the event’s livestream. Apply for credentials here. For more information, please contact [email protected].

“Science and data should drive U.S. public health research and policy​—not partisan politics or baseless conspiracy theories,” says Michael R. Bloomberg, founder of Bloomberg L.P. and Bloomberg Philanthropies, WHO Global Ambassador for Noncommunicable Diseases and Injuries, and 108th mayor of New York City. “This year’s Bloomberg American Health Summit brings leading experts to Washington to share evidence-based approaches that can improve the health of the American people.”

Through a series of on-stage conversations, keynote speakers, and videos, the event will highlight successful public health efforts and explore implications for national and state policy across the Initiative’s five focus areas: addiction and overdose; adolescent health; environmental challenges; food systems for health; and violence.

The Bloomberg American Health Initiative was created in 2016 to address the nation’s most pressing health challenges and works to improve health and life expectancy in the United States in ways that advance equity, use evidence, and change policy. The Initiative was established with a $300 million gift from Bloomberg Philanthropies to the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, the world’s leading school of public health.

The Summit will also feature the work of Bloomberg Fellows, a program of the Initiative that provides world-class public health training to individuals in organizations tackling critical challenges facing the United States. Each year, the Initiative supports 60 Fellows with full scholarships to earn an MPH or DrPH degree from the Bloomberg School. Each Fellow represents an organization working on one of the Initiative’s five focus areas. The growing network of 388 Fellows and 318 collaborating organizations from 43 states, Washington, D.C., and two territories, is using the tools of public health to positively impact their own communities.

“I am thrilled that this year’s summit is bringing leading thinkers and changemakers together in our nation’s capital to discuss the future of public health policy, especially in a new administration,” says Ellen J. MacKenzie, dean of the Bloomberg School. “This is an extraordinary opportunity to spark new ideas and forge new partnerships as we work to pursue practical, achievable solutions to some of our greatest health challenges in such a historic time.”

The main plenary session on December 3 will be available to the public via livestream.

To learn more about the Bloomberg American Health Summit, please visit the Summit website.

About the Bloomberg American Health InitiativeThe Bloomberg American Health Initiative at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health was developed to tackle five core issues that deeply challenge the nation’s health: addiction and overdose; adolescent health; environmental challenges; food systems for health; and violence. The Initiative’s work with faculty, Bloomberg Fellows, and collaborating organizations is building a dynamic nationwide network committed to harnessing data and developing new approaches to public health that will ensure a healthier future for all Americans. Learn more here: Bloomberg American Health Initiative.

About Bloomberg Philanthropies

Bloomberg Philanthropies invests in 700 cities and 150 countries around the world to ensure better, longer lives for the greatest number of people. The organization focuses on creating lasting change in five key areas: the Arts, Education, Environment, Government Innovation, and Public Health. Bloomberg Philanthropies encompasses all of Michael R. Bloomberg’s giving, including his foundation, corporate, and personal philanthropy as well as Bloomberg Associates, a philanthropic consultancy that advises cities around the world. In 2023, Bloomberg Philanthropies distributed $3 billion. For more information, please visit bloomberg.org, sign up for our newsletter, or follow us on Instagram, LinkedIn, YouTube, Threads, Facebook, and X.

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