A state health committee to set guidance on vaccine policy will continue to meet and respond to potential changes coming from the federal government. [Health News Illinois]

Dr. Arti Barnes, the chief medical officer at the Illinois Department of Public Health, said during a Tuesday Health News Illinois event on vaccine policy that the agency’s Immunization Advisory Committee will continue to discuss recommendations made at the federal level and whether those guidelines “will work for the people of Illinois.”

Last month, IDPH’s Immunization Advisory Committee approved new fall vaccine guidance that recommended COVID-19 vaccines for all adults and most children.

It also recommended COVID-19 vaccine recommendations for those between 6 and 23 months old, and for children between 2 and 17 years old if they are in a higher-risk category or if parents want them to have the vaccine.

The guidance also covers RSV immunization and flu vaccinations.

The guidance, adopted by IDPH, contrasts with that from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, which voted on a more restrictive approach to coronavirus vaccines by recommending that everyone consult a clinician before getting a shot. 

The federal committee is expected to meet later this year and could potentially approve delaying the birth dose of the hepatitis B vaccine.

“Whether the Illinois organization decides to meet and when will really hinge on the need to react and respond to what's happening at the federal level,” Barnes said.

The expansion of the state committee is among the steps the Pritzker administration has taken to expand Illinois’ role in vaccine policy.

Gov. JB Pritzker issued an executive order last month that orders IDPH to develop contingency plans to maintain access to vaccines for eligible children “if federal disruptions threaten inventory.” 

They were also tasked with issuing a standing order to allow eligible providers in pharmacies and other clinical settings to administer vaccines recommended by the agency.

Barnes said Tuesday that there was a “lot of hesitation” about IDPH taking more of a role in issuing vaccine guidance, but the feedback from providers and patients has been overwhelmingly positive.

Jennie Pinkwater, CEO of the Illinois Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics, said the move has allowed their members to “feel comfortable” providing vaccines to patients, including those off-label.

She said they will continue to push policymakers to support vaccine policies, but they recognize the challenges at the federal level.

“There is an attack on the entire process around vaccinations, which just can be very hard to influence,” she said.

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In their public pledges to tackle chronic disease in the United States, federal health leaders have made few mentions of women’s health. As a clinician who has spent a career focused on how science can better serve women, I have found this lack of attention unsurprising. Reference to the female reproductive tract still too often provokes discomfort among decision-makers, leading women’s health to be deprioritized, then ultimately neglected. Within the National Institutes of Health (NIH), despite decades of policy to advance the topic, research specific to the health needs of women has remained an afterthought. Support for women’s health research from the NIH, consistently less than 10% of the overall budget, has been declining.¹ 

[JAMA]

For the NIH to continue to overlook women’s health, when a primary goal of the “MAHA” movement is to end rising rates of chronic disease, would be a tragic missed opportunity. Women are more likely than men to be diagnosed with a chronic illness or multimorbidity—the coexistence of 2 or more unrelated chronic diseases. Women also uniquely experience chronic gynecologic disorders that have historically been dismissed as a niche concern by the biomedical community.²

Women’s health was at one time considered a crucial component of medicine. In 1893, when the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine was founded as the model for modern medical education, gynecology was 1 of 4 original pillars.³ Alongside medicine, surgery, and pathology, the field was delineated as essential for a complete understanding of the human body. While other specialties subdivided and grew increasingly subspecialized, the scope of gynecology broadened. Its first merger was with obstetrics, and the second was with primary care for women. The ostensible goal was comprehensive care for women. But within the persistently male-dominated world of medicine, gynecology has been diluted, siloed, and diminished in stature.⁴

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Each year, National Lead Poisoning Prevention Week (NLPPW) is a call to bring together individuals, organizations, industry, and state, tribal, and local governments to increase lead poisoning prevention awareness to reduce childhood exposure to lead. Review activities and resources for the 25th annual National Lead Poisoning Prevention Week. [CDC]

IOMC -Pathways to Lead Exposure- Protecting Children, Family and Communities is one of IOMC's programmatic areas of focus. Visit this page>

IOMC is pleased to support its strategic partner, The LARC Foundation in their effort of 'progress against childhood lead poisoning.'

From lead pipes and drinking water to paint, there's a wealth of information available. 

WEBINAR: You are invited to attend the webinar on October 30, 2025, at 7:00 PM CT - "Don't Be Mis-Lead: Pathways to Lead Exposure – Protecting Children, Families & Communities." Free Webinar. More details and to register>

In children especially, a positive blood lead level results in cognitive impairment and a lifetime of mental and physical health challenges. There is no acceptable level of lead exposure.

The Lead Abatement Resource Center Foundation (LARC Foundation) is an independent nonprofit organization (501c3) dedicated to eliminating positive blood levels in children. LARC does this through education, advocacy, and research on the child, the family, and the community.

The LARC Foundation is engaged in a broad lead awareness campaign focused on communities where there is a known propensity of measured blood lead levels in children.

CDC has information available and activities this week. Visit this page>

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The city has adopted a ‘multifactorial approach to a multifactorial problem’ and has seen a 37% reduction in deaths since the national peak of the crisis {KFF Health News & The Guardian]

 Overdose in America: analysis reveals deaths rising in some regions even as US sees national decline. 

Among US counties containing the nation’s 10 largest cities, Cook county, Illinois – where Chicago  is located – has seen the largest reduction in overdose deaths since the national peak of the crisis in 2023, by 37%, according to an exclusive Guardian analysis.

Chicago has one of the most robust drug supply surveillance and overdose prevention response systems in the nation. Jenny Hua, medical director for the Chicago department of public health, hesitated to take full credit for the progress, explaining that many factors influencing overdose deaths are beyond any one health department’s control. It’s also easier to have a coordinated response in a big city, where people and resources are concentrated. Changes to the drug supply are also affecting regions differently.

More>

You may be interested> 

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Much has changed since Consumer Reports first tested protein powders and shakes. Over the past 15 years, Americans’ obsession with protein has transformed what had been a niche product into the centerpiece of a multibillion-dollar wellness craze, driving booming supplement sales and spawning a new crop of protein-fortified foods that now saturate supermarket shelves and social media feeds. [MEDPAGE TODAY] 

Yet for all the industry’s growth and rebranding, one thing hasn’t changed: Protein powders still carry troubling levels of toxic heavy metals, according to a new Consumer Reports investigation. Our latest tests of 23 protein powders and ready-to-drink shakes from popular brands found that heavy metal contamination has become even more common among protein products, raising concerns that the risks are growing right alongside the industry itself.

For more than two-thirds of the products we analyzed, a single serving contained more lead than CR’s food safety experts say is safe to consume in a day—some by more than 10 times.

“It’s concerning that these results are even worse than the last time we tested,” said Tunde Akinleye, the CR food safety researcher who led the testing project. This time, in addition to the average level of lead being higher than what we found 15 years ago, there were also fewer products with undetectable amounts of it. The outliers also packed a heavier punch. Naked Nutrition’s Vegan Mass Gainer powder, the product with the highest lead levels, had nearly twice as much lead per serving as the worst product we analyzed in 2010.

More>

You may be interested in this webinar on 10.30.2025 Don't Be Mis-Lead! Pathways to Lead Exposure- Protecting Your Children, Family and Community > 

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Behavioral health leaders are observing a shift: industry needs are becoming more complex, intersecting with social, digital and physical health factors in new ways. While awareness and demand for services continue to grow, infrastructure, training and access have not kept pace. From early intervention to workforce well-being, the field is moving toward more integrated, proactive models of care — with an emphasis on meeting patients where they are and preparing for needs that traditional systems weren’t built to address. [Becker's Behavioral Health]

Editor’s note: These responses have been lightly edited for clarity.

Question: The definition of behavioral health need is expanding — from workplace burnout to adolescent distress and aging populations. What emerging patient population or behavioral health challenge do you believe the industry isn’t yet prepared for — and how should leaders begin responding?

Scott Baker. Executive Vice President of Growth and Partnerships, Array Behavioral Care (Mount Laurel, N.J.): As tech‑ and AI‑enabled mental health solutions expand, one emerging population the industry is not yet fully prepared to support is behavioral health professionals themselves. While digital tools such as machine learning for clinical decision support and AI‑enabled scribes hold enormous potential to improve the efficiency, quality and accessibility of behavioral care, many clinicians remain wary of these innovations. This is especially true in behavioral health, where care is often viewed as a relational art form that resists quantification. Fears of being replaced by technology, combined with limited understanding of how these tools actually work, can contribute to skepticism and resistance.

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Food Is Medicine (FIM) programs promote patients’ access to healthy foods to help prevent, manage, and treat diet-related health conditions. Although these programs have burgeoned in recent years, they have remained siloed in health care and represent a missed opportunity to fight climate change and promote community health resilience. [New England Journal of Medicine Catalyst]

Addressing these aspects of community health and well-being requires new strategies and interventions for FIM programs. In this article, the authors describe the University of California, Davis Health’s Foodways to Health approach as a regional food system, which increases access to fresh produce and medically tailored meals while promoting climate-friendly food production practices and community engagement. They highlight five key pillars of the approach, share a framework to evaluate climate-friendly FIM programs, and underscore lessons learned for health systems embarking on FIM programs to improve healthy eating, climate protection, and community resilience.  

More>

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Need to know more about lead exposure and its various sources? You're not alone. From lead pipes and drinking water to paint, there's a wealth of information available. You are invited to attend the webinar on October 30, 2025, at 7:00 PM CT - "Don't Be Mis-Lead: Pathways to Lead Exposure – Protecting Children, Families & Communities." Free Webinar. More details and to register>

The LARC Foundation will help you get informed, be empowered, and stay safe as we work together to combat childhood lead poisoning.  In children especially, a positive blood lead level results in cognitive impairment and a lifetime of mental and physical health challenges. There is no acceptable level of lead exposure.

By attending this free webinar, you will gain valuable information about:

- Pathways to lead exposure
- Areas and sources of lead
- Testing and guidelines for detection
- Resources for further assistance

The Lead Abatement Resource Center Foundation (LARC Foundation) is an independent nonprofit organization (501c3) dedicated to eliminating positive blood levels in children. LARC does this through education, advocacy, and research on the child, the family, and the community.

IOMC is a collaborative research partner in preventative health, disease prevention, environmental health, and community health management.

IOMC Programmatic Focus - Maternal & Child Health and Pathways to Lead Exposure. More>

The LARC Foundation is engaged in a broad lead awareness campaign focused on communities where there is a known propensity of measured blood lead levels in children.

The LARC “framework,” addresses public health, healthcare, and environmental issues.

You will learn whether you or your children should be tested, and if your water, garden, or home needs an assessment. Share this webinar with others- parents, educators, community leaders, providers, and others.

Speakers:
Anita Stewart, MD, MPH, JD, MBA
Pediatrician (over 40 years), Public Health Specialist; Billings Fellow, IOMC Maternal & Child Health Workgroup member and Past Chair, and Board Member, IOMC Board of Governors

Susan Buchanan, MD, MPH
Clinical Associate Professor and Associate Director of the Occupational and Environmental Medicine Residency Program
Certified in Family Medicine and Preventive Medicine/Occupational Medicine

Open to all.  More details here>

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On September 25, 2025, IDPH and key partners released the first of its kind Illinois’ Blueprint for Birth Equity. Download copy of the Illinois Blueprint for Birth Equity> 

This blueprint builds on the work of past and current partners across sectors and leverages existing research and insights about the barriers to achieving optimal maternal and birth outcomes, including analysis and recommendations from the 2023 Illinois Maternal Morbidity and Mortality Report. In addition, this blueprint represents a year-long engagement process that drew expertise from leaders across multiple sectors, including state agencies, maternal health experts, community leaders, health care providers, and parents.

This blueprint offers an assessment of what the state of Illinois is doing to improve maternal health and birth equity and is intended to complement and align with the efforts of health care providers, advocates, researchers, and local leaders across the state. Among the contributors were four Health and Human Services (HHS) agencies with significant responsibility for maternal health and birth equity: the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH), Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services (HFS), Illinois Department of Human Services (IDHS), and Illinois Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS). These core agencies were joined by additional public agencies whose work intersects with key drivers of maternal health, including the Illinois Department of Insurance (IDOI), Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR), Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE), and Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO). 

More> 

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The field of public health was defined in a 1920 article by Charles-Edward Amory Winslow as the “science and the art of preventing disease, prolonging life, and promoting physical health through organized community efforts.”1 Its foundations had developed over hundreds of years, but it began to flourish in the 19th and 20th centuries. During that time, the implementation of hygienic and sanitary measures, health codes, vaccination programs, and harm-reduction policies led to advances, including notable reductions in morbidity and mortality — though they were sometimes accompanied by tension between an individual person’s rights and protection of the health of populations.2 [New England Journal of Medicine]

Unfortunately, past progress in public health is now at risk in the United States. The current crisis has resulted from a confluence of interrelated factors, which can be understood by reference to what I might call the six “coms” (“com” aptly meaning “with” or “together”): complacency, commitment, commercialism, complexity, communication, and comportment.

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