Recent News

"City Neighborhoods Where Life Expectancy Is Lowest" (New York Times)

Apr 28th, 2015

Life expectancy is the ultimate measure of a neighborhood’s well-being, and many of the map’s bright red splotches designating the lowest rates in the city line up neatly with the places where Monday night’s violence occurred. “Health equity is a civil rights issue,” Dr. Leana Wen, Baltimore’s health commissioner, said in an interview. “We’re often told we grow up in the land of two Baltimores. Life expectancy differs by 20 years, depending on which city block you happen to be born in.”

Operational Changes for Tuesday, April 28

Apr 28th, 2015

The Baltimore City Health Department is making several operational changes today.

• WIC sites will close at 12 pm.
• All Senior Centers will be closed today. 
• Druid Health Center is closed. Eastern Health Center will close at noon (12pm) today.
• Field Health Services will be providing only life-sustaining medical transports such as chemotherapy and dialysis.

The safety and welfare of our staff, clients and the greater Baltimore community are of the utmost importance to us. Please stay safe.

A Conversation with Dr. Tony Iton: Community Organizing & Public Health

Apr 23rd, 2015

When Dr. Tony Iton became the Vice President for Healthy Communities at the California Endowment, he was given a unique opportunity: $1 billion to improve the health status of residents in 14 low-income communities across California in a measurable fashion over 10 years. The kicker? Using a social determinants of health strategy, he could not spend a single dollar on healthcare!

"How Trauma Impacts Baltimore Residents' Health" (WYPR - Maryland Morning)

Apr 20th, 2015

Trauma is a word many of us associate with the battlefield, or perhaps the athletic field – a wound, a shock, a blow--physical or mental. Now there’s growing understanding of how cities are affected by trauma – the people who live in some neighborhoods, and entire communities – and there’s more awareness of the awful toll trauma takes on health. Today the Urban Health Institute at Johns Hopkins has assembled dozens of experts to look at the impact of trauma on cities and on health. One of the speakers will be Baltimore’s Health Commissioner Leana Wen. She stopped by WYPR first to discuss trauma with us.

"Mayor and Health Commissioner Holding Second Community Forum For Heroin Treatment and Prevention Taskforce"

Apr 20th, 2015

This week, Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake and Baltimore Health Commissioner Dr. Leana Wen will be holding the second community forum for the Heroin Treatment and Prevention Taskforce.  This is the second of two community meetings to hear from community stakeholders regarding overdose issues. The meeting will be held April 23 from 6:30 pm – 8:00 pm at East Baltimore Development Inc., 1731 E. Chase Street and is open to the public.   The meeting will include community conversation around three issues: Preventing fatal heroin overdoses; increasing access to quality treatment; and improving neighborhood compatibility.  See the attached press release for additional information.

"Safe Streets: Baltimore's Secret Crime Fighting Weapon" (The Real News) April 15, 2015

Apr 16th, 2015

Baltimore's reputation as one of the country's most violent cities has been difficult to change. Which is why city leaders have started turning to programs like Safe Streets, an alternative approach to reducing violence.

"Heroin task force addressing age-old Baltimore issue" (Baltimore Sun) April 15, 2015

Apr 16th, 2015

In Baltimore, the site of the second of six task force meetings being held across the state, heroin is not a new subject. "Heroin and opioid addiction ties into the very fabric of our city," Dr. Leana Wen, the city's health commissioner, told the panel. It underlies nearly every major problem, from poverty to crime to mental illness, said Wen, who herself has been hosting meetings as the city's heroin task force studies the issue as well.

"Heroin Summit" (WBAL-TV) April 15, 2015

Apr 16th, 2015

Maryland Lt. Gov. Boyd Rutherford held a summit Wednesday in Baltimore for the Maryland Heroin and Opioid Emergency Task Force.  Baltimore Health Commissioner Dr. Leana Wen said heroin has been a problem in the city for decades. "We have to focus on saving lives, first and foremost. Second, I want to make sure we see addiction as a chronic disease, which it is. It's just like high blood pressure or diabetes -- there are treatments available, but it is something that can be fatal," Wen said.

Go Orange for Animals in April!

Apr 16th, 2015

Baseball season in Baltimore is not the only reason to “Go Orange” in April.  April is also the ASPCA’s Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Month when supporters are urged to raise awareness about the problem by “Going Orange for Animals.”  Baltimore City Health Department Animal Control Officers will join the effort in by wearing orange ribbons this month to bring attention to the issue while performing their normal duties.

Go Orange for Animals in April

"Mayor’s Heroin Taskforce Updates Community on Progress" (Afro American) April 8, 2015

Apr 9th, 2015

More Baltimore residents died as a result of drug overdose than homicide last year, a startling fact in light of how easy it is to prevent opioid overdoses. We know how to prevent deaths, and there are effective treatment options for addiction. The question is, how we get the necessary resources to those who need them most? This was the message at the first community update meeting of the Mayor’s Heroin Treatment and Prevention Taskforce.

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