The Department of Health & Human Services

FEDERAL GOVERNMENT: Executive

OOOOThe Department of Health & Human Services

OOOOHOME | EXECUTIVE | HEALTH & HUMAN SERVICES


	OOOOHealth and Human Services is a particularly information-rich departmental web site. The links below only give an idea of what is available. The blue arrows represent pages we recommend; but we particularly recommend exploring the entire site.

	THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
		The official site.
	Site Map
		While the HHS home page is indexed well, it is "consumer oriented". The site map should be consulted.
	Administration for Children & Families
		Issues include health, abuse and neglect, insurance, adoption, child support, runaways and disabilities.
	Administration on Aging
		Issues include health, abuse and neglect, insurance, nutrition, housing and eldercare.
	Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
		Sponsors reseach that improves "the outcomes and quality of health care, reduce its costs, address patient safety and medical errors, and broaden access to effective services". Based on "evidence-based information on health care outcomes; quality; and cost, use, and access". The information is intended for healthcare providers and policy-makers.
	Catalogue of Federal Domestic Assistence
		The 1500 programs through which the government provides assistence and benefits to the American public.
"	Center for Disease Control and Prevention
		The nation's health watchdog and primary federal locus for applied medicine.
		Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry OOOOAll about environmental hazards, including maps of hazardous waste sites.
	"	CDC Wonder OOOO"Provides a single point of access to a wide variety of reports and numeric public health data."
	"	Health Topics A - Z OOOOAs stated.
	"	National Center for Health Statistics OOOOA rich source of information on health, insurance, etc. Includes National Vital Statistics System.
	"	National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health OOOONumerous indexes organized by industries and occupations (including "body art", hazards and exposures, diseases and industries and chemicals, plus data and statistics.
		National Prevention Information Network OOOOSource of federal informaion on HIV/AIDS, STDs and TB.
		Publications OOOOCollection of reports from numerous federal public health organizations.
	"	Travelers Health OOOOComplete with vaccine recommendations and health information and warnings for specific regions.
	"	WISQARS (Web-based Injury Statistics Query and Reporting System) OOOOPart of the National Center for Injury Prevention & Control, source of mortality and non-fatal injury data.
	Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Service
		Site directs Medicare recipients to Medicare.gov, the official site for people with Medicare. There is also some information of recent health insurance reform, including HIPAA and NMHPA.
	"	Research Assistance Data Center OOOOThe facts and figures behind Medicare and Medicaid as provided by HHS.
	"	Nursing Home Compare OOOODiscloses healthcare and fire violations for all nursing homes, as well as ownership, size and locations. Search by state or county.
"	The Food and Drug Administration
		Responsible for the safety of our food, drugs, cosmetics and medical devices. The FDA also regulates animal health and veterinary medicine. The site is extensive, but fairly transparent. The site map and index are very useful. You can also find more food and drug information at GPOAccess: Food & Drugs, including selecetd laws, regulations, legislation, publications and other resources.
		Budget OOOO"Brief" version offered here.
		Center for Food Safety & Applied Nutrition OOOODirectory of links for information on food, drugs, cosmetics, dyes, pesticides, packaging, recalls, etc.
		Center for Drug Evaluation & Research OOOOExtensive information using the tabs at the top.
		Center for Veterinary Medicine OOOOFood and drugs for animals.
		Cosmetics OOOOInformation on everything from contact lenses to hair dyes, aroma therapy to tatoos.
	"	FoodSafety.gov OOOOAn excellent reference for food safety, pathogens and diseases, as well as food- and animal-born illnesses.
		Laws & Regulations OOOOList of those enforced by the FDA.
		Manuals & Publications OOOOList of what is publicly available.
"	Healthfinder
		Information on a multitude of diseases, disorders and general health topics.
	Head Start Bureau
		Home page for the national Head Start Program.
"	National Institutes of Heath
		The nation's medical reasearch organization. A primary clearinghouse for drug and disease information.
		Institutes, Centers & Offices OOOOThe numerous research organizations under the NIH umbrella.
		Environmental Health Perspectives OOOOOmnibus site on environmental health.
	"	Health Information OOOOAlphabetized health and disease information.
	"	MedLine Plus OOOOHealth topics, drug information, medical encyclopedia and a dictionary.
	"	National Cancer Institute OOOOComprehensive general information, plus clinical trials and the Cancer Library.
		News and Press Releases OOOOThe latest from....Includes recent study finidings and health alerts. There is an archive.
		Information for parents and teens on preventing runaways, and reconnecting runaways to families or shelter.
	Office for Civil Rights
		You will also find documents on welfare reform and medical privacy here.
	Office of the Inspector General
		How HHS keeps track of your money and tracks abuse. Also contains documents pertaining to fraud, regulatory authority and federal register notices.
	Office for Public Affairs
		Speeches, press releases and testimony from HHS.
	Office for Public Health and Science
		Covers HIV/AIDS, Women's and Minority Health as well as HHS family planning programs under the Office of Population Affairs.
	Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation
		A number of interesting topics in what seems a dry sidestream of the department, though less than there were when this page was created. Most of what is missing involved dtata and statistics.
	"	Addressing the New Health Care Crisis: Reforming the Medical Litigation System to Improve the Quality of Health Care OOOOThe impact of litigation on insurers and health care costs.
	"	Income & Poverty OOOOA number of articles on poverty and low-income workers.
	"	Physical Activity Fundamental to Preventing Disease OOOOThe impact of exercise on health and health care costs.
	"	Poverty Guidelines, Reasearch & Measurement OOOOWhat constitutes "poverty" in America, the history of that definition, and selected outside links to poverty research.
	"	Prevention Makes Common "Cents" OOOOThe dramatic disease-related costs of obesity and tobacco use, including diabetes, heart disease and asthma.
	PandemicFlu.gov: The government's action plan for pandemic and avian flu.
	The Surgeon General
	The Budget
	Freedom of Information


	LINKS
		Medicare Rights Center OOOOAn excellent source for Medicare information. See also their paper Medicare: A Guide for 2004 Presidential Candidates which traces both the history, value and statistical background of Medicare.
		GPOAccess Topics: Health and Safety OOOOThe site includes select documents as well as regulations, legislation, publications and other resources. There is also the same for Food & Drugs.