44 Communities Receive HHS Grants

• Date: March 23, 2010
• Source: Admin

Funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, HHS announced an award of 372 Million in Prevention and Wellness Grants to 44 Communities around the Nation. The awards are part of the HHS Communities Putting Prevention to Work (CPPW) initiative to support [public health efforts in order to reduce obesity and smoking, increase physical activity and improve nutrition.

First Lady Michelle Obama believes "This is an unprecedented level of commitment to prevention… Investing in local communities will build a healthier America, and we aim to reach more than 50 million people who are living in the communities receiving these awards.”

According to Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, “We’re looking to create the healthy community environments that will help prevent heart attacks, strokes, cancer, diabetes, and other serious health problems on a broad scale…And, by preventing and controlling chronic disease, we can start to turn around rising health care costs as well,” she said.