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Chronic Disease Prevention

Advancing evidence-based chronic disease prevention strategies

Our Impact

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  • 10 years longer life among those with sickle cell disease
  • $15M budget appropriation to help 2 million with asthma
  • 13M low-income Californians meeting federal nutrition guidelines

Our Work

Chronic diseases such as heart disease, cancer, diabetes and asthma are leading causes of death and disability in the U.S. They are also a growing health problem in lowincome countries around the world. These diseases disproportionately affect communities of color and low-income populations, and are responsible for close to 75 percent of all U.S. health care costs.

Successful prevention strategies begin with recognizing the complex interplay of social factors that drive chronic disease, including poverty, racism, education, access to care and local community environments.

At PHI, we oversee a diverse portfolio of cutting-edge chronic disease prevention programs that collectively work to address these social determinants of health, with an emphasis on policy and systems change to have the broadest impact.

Critical Issues

Pioneering Expertise

PHI Priority

Building Health Equity

PHI's Regional Asthma Management and Prevention program advocates for policy and systems changes to address asthma, asthma disparities, and social and environmental inequities. Thanks to their collaborative campaigns, California is now the first state in the country to list mold as a substandard housing condition. Their efforts have also resulted in two Medi-Cal policies that increase access to asthma home visiting services for people with poorly controlled asthma; and landmark regulations to help reduce a range of air pollutants in inequitably burdened communities across California, including the reduction of diesel pollution from trucks in low-income communities and communities of color.

Programs

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PHI's Top 24 Impacts for 2024

During 2024, PHI worked alongside our partners to advance public health research, policies, programs and interventions in communities around the globe. Explore some of our most impactful work in 2024—a collection of our top stories, tools, resources and ideas that helped to improve health, advance equity and build community power.

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