A Polio-Free U.S. Thanks to Vaccine Efforts

"Thanks to effective vaccine, the United States has been polio-free since 1979. But poliovirus is still a threat in some countries. Be part of the success story and get your child vaccinated on schedule.

Polio, or poliomyelitis, is a crippling and potentially deadly infectious disease. It is caused by the poliovirus. The virus spreads from person to person and can invade an infected person’s brain and spinal cord, causing paralysis (can’t move parts of the body).

Thanks to the polio vaccine, dedicated health care professionals, and parents who vaccinate their children on schedule, polio has been eliminated in this country for more than 30 years.

It is crucial to maintain the success rate of U.S. vaccination efforts since the disease still exists in some parts of the world. People most at risk are those who never had polio vaccine, those who never received all the recommended vaccine doses, and those traveling to areas that could put them at risk for getting polio..."

Polio

Carbon Monoxide (CO) Poisioning

"When power outages occur after severe weather (such as severe storms, hurricanes or tornadoes), using alternative sources of power can cause carbon monoxide (CO) to build up in a home and poison the people and animals inside.

Every year, at least 430 people die in the U. S. from accidental CO poisoning. Approximately 50,000 people in the U.S. visit the emergency department each year due to accidental CO poisoning. There are steps you can take to help protect yourself and your household from CO poisoning. Change the batteries in your CO detector every six months. If you don’t have a battery-powered or battery back-up CO detector, buy one soon.

CO is found in fumes produced by portable generators, stoves, lanterns, and gas ranges, or by burning charcoal and wood. CO from these sources can build up in enclosed or partially enclosed spaces. People and animals in these spaces can be poisoned and can die from breathing CO.

CO poisoning is entirely preventable. Protect yourself and your family by acting wisely in case of a power outage and learning the symptoms of CO poisoning..."
Carbon Monoxide

Prevent Shingles

"Shingles causes a painful, blistering skin rash. Almost 1 out of 3 people in the United States will develop shingles during their lifetime. Your risk of shingles increases as you get older. If you are 60 years of age or older get the shingles vaccine.

Shingles, also known as herpes zoster, causes a painful, blistering skin rash that can last two to four weeks. For some people, the pain can last for months or even years after the rash goes away. This pain is called postherpetic neuralgia or PHN. It is the most common complication of shingles. The risk of shingles and PHN increases as you get older.

People have described pain from shingles as excruciating, aching, burning, stabbing, and shock-like. It has been compared to the pain of childbirth or kidney stones. This pain may also lead to depression, anxiety, difficulty concentrating, loss of appetite, and weight loss. Shingles can interfere with activities of daily living like dressing, bathing, eating, cooking, shopping, and travel. Shingles can lead to eye complications that can result in vision loss..."

Shingles

Managing Travelers’ Diarrhea While Traveling Abroad

"What do you do if you find yourself with a rumbling tummy while traveling overseas? Follow these tips to prevent or treat travelers’ diarrhea and still enjoy your international trip.

What is it?

Travelers’ diarrhea is caused by a variety of pathogens but most commonly bacteria found in food and water, often related to poor hygiene practices in local restaurants. An estimated 30% to 70% of travelers experience travelers’ diarrhea, depending on where they go and what time of year. Countries are generally divided into 3 risk groups: high, intermediate, and low.

• Destinations with high risk: Asia, the Middle East, Africa, Mexico, and Central and South America.
• Destinations with intermediate risk: Eastern Europe, South Africa, and some Caribbean islands.
• Destinations with low risk: the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, and Northern and Western Europe..."

Travelers' diarrhea

Building Healthy Inclusive Communities

"Since passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) 27 years ago, communities have become more inclusive and people with disabilities have better access to buildings, transportation, and employment. However, there is still work to be done, and we all play a role in creating communities where everybody can thrive.

One in five adults in the United States have some type of disability, and many people will experience a disability during their lifetimes. A disability is any condition of the body or mind that makes it more difficult for the person with the condition to do certain activities and interact with the surrounding world. However, the way our cities are built and how we provide access to the places where people live, work, learn, and play can either strongly encourage or serve as a major barrier for people with disabilities to participate and be included in community life..."
Inclusive Communities

Antibiotic Resistance, Food, and Food-Producing Animals

"More than 400,000 Americans get sick every year from infections caused by antibiotic-resistant foodborne bacteria, according to CDC estimates. People who are infected with antibiotic-resistant bacteria may experience more severe illness, including hospitalization and death, because these infections can be harder to treat. Learn what CDC is doing and how you can protect yourself and your loved ones from these types of infections.

Antibiotic Resistance and Food Production

Antibiotic resistance is the ability of bacteria to resist the effects of an antibiotic. This means that bacteria are not killed by the antibiotic and can continue to grow. About one in five resistant infections are caused by germs, such as Salmonella and Campylobacter, from food and animals..."

Antibiotic resistance

Executive Order 9981: Desegregation of the Armed Forces

"On July 26, 1948, President Harry S. Truman signed this executive order establishing the President’s Committee on Equality of Treatment and Opportunity in the Armed Services, committing the government to integrating the segregated military.
Read more at the Our Documents..."
Desegregation in Armed Forces

JFK Assassination Records - 2017 Additional Documents Release

"The National Archives and Records Administration is releasing documents previously withheld in accordance with the JFK Assassination Records Collection Act.  The vast majority of the Collection (88%) has been open in full and released to the public since the late 1990s.  The records at issue are documents previously identified as assassination records, but withheld in full or withheld in part.  Learn more

This release consists of 3,810 documents, including 441 formerly withheld-in-full documents and 3,369 documents formerly released with portions redacted.  The documents originate from FBI and CIA series identified by the Assassination Records Review Board as assassination records.  More releases will follow.

To view the entire file, you may visit the National Archives at College Park and request access to the original records..."

JFK assassination records

U.S. Role in the World: Background and Issues for Congress

"The overall U.S. role in the world since the end of World War II in 1945 (i.e., over the past 70 years) is generally described as one of global leadership and significant engagement in international affairs. A key aim of that role has been to promote and defend the open international order that the United States, with the support of its allies, created in the years after World War II. In addition to promoting and defending the open international order, the overall U.S. role is generally described as having been one of promoting freedom, democracy, and human rights, while criticizing and resisting authoritarianism where possible, and opposing the emergence of regional hegemons in Eurasia or a spheres-of-influence world.

Certain statements and actions from the Trump Administration have led to uncertainty about the Administration’s intentions regarding the future U.S. role in the world. Based on those statements and actions, some observers have speculated that the Trump Administration may want to change the U.S. role in one or more ways. A change in the overall U.S. role could have profound implications for U.S. foreign policy, national security, and international economic policy, for Congress as an institution, and for many federal policies and programs..."
U.S. world role

Fatal Drownings in Pools Involving Young Children Decreases By 17 Percent Nationwide Since 2010

"A new report released today by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) shows that the number of reported fatal child drownings in swimming pools involving children younger than 5—the most vulnerable population—has decreased 17 percent nationwide since 2010, the year our Pool Safely public education campaign was launched. Despite the decrease, fatal and non-fatal child drownings in pools and spas continue to pose a public health challenge across the United States. In national and local media interviews today, CPSC Acting Chairman Ann Marie Buerkle urged families to be vigilant when children are in and around the water this summer.

“Despite the positive decline in numbers, there are still far too many children who drown each year in pools and spas across the country,” said Acting Chairman Buerkle. “Swimming should be fun and a great way for families to be active, so long as everyone knows how to pool safely.  As a mother, grandmother and registered nurse, I raised my kids, and now my grandkids, with a respect for water. Constant supervision, along with four-sided fencing, knowing how to perform CPR and teaching children how to swim are all important steps to continuing the decline in child drownings.”..."

Youth drownings

Crime in the United States: Preliminary January - June 2016

"Preliminary figures indicate that law enforcement agencies throughout the nation showed an overall increase of 5.3 percent in the number of violent crimes brought to their attention for the first 6 months of 2016 when compared with figures reported for the same time in 2015. The violent crime category includes murder, rape (revised definition), rape (legacy definition), robbery, and aggravated assault. The number of property crimes in the United States from January to June of 2016 decreased 0.6 percent when compared with data for the same time period in 2015. Property crimes include burglary, larceny-theft, and motor vehicle theft. Arson is also a property crime, but data for arson are not included in property crime totals due to fluctuations in reporting. Figures for 2016 indicate that arson decreased 1.1 percent when compared with 2015 figures for the same time period.

The data presented in Tables 1 and 2 indicate the percent change in offenses known to law enforcement for the first 6 months of 2016 compared with those for the first half of 2015 by population group and region, respectively. Table 3 reflects the percent change in offenses reported within the nation for consecutive years (each year compared to the prior year). Table 4 presents the number of offenses known to law enforcement for agencies with resident populations of 100,000 or more that provided 6 months of complete data for 2016. In addition, Table 4 presents 6 months of 2015 data, where available, as a point of comparison. All data in this Report are preliminary..."

Cime in the U.S.: 2016

Summer Travel 2017

"School is out, work in the office is quieting down, and cold temperatures are a distant memory. It’s time to relax and enjoy the warm, sunny weather. If international travel is part of your summer plans, the CDC Travelers’ Health website is a great first stop to get prepared.

Before You Go

• Visit your doctor or a travel medicine specialist, ideally 4–6 weeks before your trip, to get any vaccines or medicines you may need. Go to the Destinations website to check the vaccines and medicines list specific to your destination. Even if you are leaving soon, a visit to a travel medicine doctor is valuable. The doctor can counsel you on ways you can reduce your risk of getting sick or hurt while traveling.
• Pack a Travel Health Kit. Include prescription and over-the-counter medicines, sunscreen, alcohol-based sanitizer, first aid supplies, health insurance card, insect repellent, and condoms.
• Check for any current Travel Health Notices. These notices will inform you about health issues related to disease outbreaks, special events or gatherings, natural disasters, or other conditions at your destination.
• Check the US Department of State website for information on security risks. Register with the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program so the US embassy or consulate can contact you in an emergency...."

Summer Travel

Community HealthSim

"The Community HealthSim is a violence prevention tool on CDC’s VetoViolence website. This game-like experience demonstrates the connections between violence and community issues, such as struggling businesses and schools, overcrowded jails, and long wait hours in the emergency room.

The simulation puts you in the driver’s seat of Vetoville. You can explore the town from the perspective of a “special advisor”—brought in to determine how to spend the town’s limited resources to improve the quality of life for everyone who lives there..."

Community HealthSim

Globe had 2nd warmest year to date and 3rd warmest June on record

"Climate by the Numbers

JUNE

The average global temperature set in June 2017 was 1.48 degrees F above the 20th-century average of 59.9 degrees, according to scientists from NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information. This average temperature was the third highest for June in the 1880-2017 record, behind June 2015 (second) and a record-breaking June 2016. June 2017 marks the 41st consecutive June and the 390th consecutive month with temperatures at least nominally above the 20th-century average.

*Year to date | January through June 2017

The year-to-date average temperature was 1.64 degrees F above the 20th-century average of 56.3 degrees. This was the second-warmest for this period, 0.29 of a degree behind the record set in 2016..."

Record warm weather

CBO cost estimates: H.R. 1628 American Health Care Act of 2017

"The Congressional Budget Office and the staff of the Joint Committee on Taxation (JCT) have completed an estimate of the direct spending and revenue effects of H.R. 1628, the American Health Care Act of 2017, as passed by the House of Representatives. CBO and JCT estimate that enacting that version of H.R. 1628 would reduce the cumulative federal deficit over the 2017-2026 period by $119 billion. That amount is $32 billion less than the estimated net savings for the version of H.R. 1628 that was posted on the website of the House Committee on Rules on March 22, 2017, incorporating manager’s amendments 4, 5, 24, and 25. (CBO issued a cost estimate for that earlier version of the legislation on March 23, 2017.) 1

In comparison with the estimates for the previous version of the act, under the Housepassed act, the number of people with health insurance would, by CBO and JCT’s estimates, be slightly higher and average premiums for insurance purchased individually—that is, nongroup insurance—would be lower, in part because the insurance, on average, would pay for a smaller proportion of health care costs. In addition, the agencies expect that some people would use the tax credits authorized by the act to purchase policies that would not cover major medical risks and that are not counted as insurance in this cost estimate..."
CBO costs estimates: American Health Care Act

Drawing Justice: the Art of Courtroom Illustration

"Drawing Justice: The Art of Courtroom Illustration showcases the Library’s extensive collections of original art by talented artists hired by both newspapers and television to capture the personal dynamics of legal trials. Skilled at quickly conveying both individual likenesses and the atmosphere of the courtroom, these artists reveal, in intimate detail, the dramatic and, at times, mundane aspects of trial proceedings.

The illustrations on display represent court cases dating from 1964 to the present day. These cases influenced how Americans perceive race and race relations, religion, gender issues, political and corporate corruption, international relations, and the role of celebrities in society. The corresponding drawings are poignant images of people from all walks of life during the last fifty years of court history, observed in their most vulnerable moments. While artistic styles vary, each artist brings the theater of the courtroom to life, capturing gestures, appearance, and relationships in a way that humanizes defendants, plaintiffs, lawyers, judges, and witnesses..."
Drawing justice

Democracy Promotion: An Objective of U.S. Foreign Assistance

"Promoting democratic institutions, processes, and values has long been a U.S. foreign policy objective, though the priority given to this objective has been inconsistent. World events, competing priorities, and political change within the United States all shape the attention and resources provided to democracy promotion efforts and influence whether such efforts focus on supporting fair elections abroad, strengthening civil society, promoting rule of law and human rights, or other aspects of democracy promotion.

Proponents of democracy promotion often assert that such efforts are essential to global development and U.S. security because stable democracies tend to have better economic growth and stronger protection of human rights, and are less likely to go to war with one another. Critics contend that U.S. relations with foreign countries should focus exclusively on U.S. interests and stability in the world order. U.S. interest in global stability, regardless of the democratic nature of national political systems, could discourage U.S. support for democratic transitions—the implementation of which is uncertain and may lead to more, rather than less, instability..." 
Democracy promotion

Harmful Algal Blooms

"Harmful algal blooms can produce toxins that are dangerous to people, animals, and the environment. Learn what harmful algal blooms are, how you and your pets can avoid them, and what CDC is doing to protect the public’s health.

Warm weather brings many happy occasions: picnics, ballgames, and back yard fun. It also is a time when microscopic plant-like organisms – algae and cyanobacteria – are more likely to overgrow in rivers, lakes, and oceans.

These overgrowths, called algal blooms, occur across the country. Sometimes they are just eyesores – an unpleasant scum or mats of green, red, blue, or brown organisms in the water that look or smell bad. Sometimes they also cause harm to people, animals, and the environment. In this case, they are known as harmful algal blooms. But you can’t tell if a bloom is harmful just by looking at it..."

Algal blooms

Worker Hearing Loss

"Did you know that within every industry sector, there are workers at risk for work-related hearing loss? Work-related hearing loss is common and preventable. Learn more about hearing loss within your industry and how to prevent it.

Is work-related hearing loss a major problem?

In the United States, hearing loss is the third most common chronic physical condition after high blood pressure and arthritis. It is more common than diabetes, vision trouble, or cancer. Not surprisingly, hearing loss is among the most common work-related illnesses. Over 11% of the working population has hearing difficulty, and nearly one out of four cases of worker hearing difficulty are caused by work-related exposures. These exposures include loud noise and chemicals causing damage to the inner ear (ototoxic chemicals). Ototoxic chemicals include organic solvents like trichloroethylene, heavy metals like mercury and lead, and asphyxiants like carbon monoxide..."
Hearing loss

Crime Against Persons With Disabilities, 2009-2015 - Statistical Tables

"Presents 2009-2015 National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) estimates of nonfatal violent crime (rape or sexual assault, robbery, aggravated assault, and simple assault) against persons age 12 or older with disabilities. Disabilities are classified according to six limitations: hearing, vision, cognitive, ambulatory, self-care, and independent living. The report compares the victimization of persons with and without disabilities living in noninstitutionalized households, including distributions by sex, race, Hispanic origin, age, disability type, and other victim characteristics. It also includes crime characteristics, such as victim-offender relationship, time of crime, reporting to police, and use of victim services agencies. NCVS data were combined with data from the U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey to generate victimization rates.

Highlights:

• During the 5-year aggregate period from 2011 to 2015, for each age group measured except persons age 65 or older, the rate of violent victimization against persons with disabilities was at least 2.5 times the unadjusted rate for those without disabilities.
• Among those with disabilities, persons ages 12 to 15 (144.1 per 1,000 age 12 or older) had the highest rate of violent victimization among all age groups measured.
• The rate of violent victimization against males with disabilities was 31.8 per 1,000, compared to 14.1 per 1,000 males without disabilities.
• For females with disabilities, the rate of violent victimization was 32.8 per 1,000, compared to 11.4 per 1,000 females without disabilities.
• Males and females had similar rates of total violent victimization in every disability type measured, except independent living disabilities..."

Disability statistics

Protect Your Baby from Group B Strep!

"All pregnant women should get a group B strep test when they are 35–37 weeks pregnant. Babies can get very sick and even die if their mothers pass group B strep bacteria to them during childbirth.

If you are pregnant, talk with your doctor or midwife about getting a group B strep (GBS) test. CDC recommends getting it when you are 35–37 weeks pregnant. The test shows if you are carrying group B streptococcal bacteria, which you can pass to your baby during childbirth. If you carry this bacteria, you need an antibiotic during labor to keep your baby from getting sick..."

Group B Strep

How Cardiac Rehabilitation Can Help Heal Your Heart

"If you have a heart attack or other heart problem, cardiac rehabilitation (rehab) is an important part of your recovery. Cardiac rehab can help prevent another, perhaps more serious, heart attack and can help you build heart-healthy habits. Learn more about who needs cardiac rehab and how it can help your recovery.

Nearly 800,000 people in the United States have a heart attack every year. About 1 in 4 of those people had already had a heart attack.¹ Cardiac rehab not only can help a person recover from a heart problem, but it can also prevent another heart problem in the future..."

Cardiac rehabilatation

Cancer Prevention Starts in Childhood

"You can lower your children’s risk of getting cancer later in life. Start by helping them make healthy choices like eating a diet rich in fruits and vegetables and getting regular physical activity to keep a healthy weight. Then follow the tips below to help prevent specific kinds of cancer.

Stay Safe in the Sun

Just a few serious sunburns can increase your child’s risk of skin cancer later in life. Follow our sun safety tips to protect their skin from the sun whenever they’re outdoors.

Indoor tanning and tanning outside are both dangerous. Don’t let your children or teens tan...."

Children and cancer

Success Stories in Environmental Health

"Learn more about how CDC’s National Center for Environmental Health (NCEH) and the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) protect and promote environmental health across the United States.

Your environment is everything around you—the air you breathe, the water you drink, the places where your food is grown or prepared, your workplace, and your home. When your environment is safe and healthy, you are more likely to stay healthy. But when your environment exposes you to dangerous events or harmful amounts of toxic substances, your health can be affected. In fact, 25% of all diseases worldwide are caused by something harmful in the environment..."
Environmntal health

Climate Change: Frequently Asked Questions About the 2015 Paris Agreement

"The Paris Agreement (PA) to address climate change internationally entered into force on November 4, 2016. The United States is one of 149 Parties to the treaty; President Barack Obama accepted the agreement rather than ratifying it with the advice and consent of the Senate. On June 1, 2017, President Donald J. Trump announced his intent to withdraw the United States from the agreement and that his Administration would seek to reopen negotiations on the PA or on a new “transaction.” Following the provisions of the PA, U.S. withdrawal could take effect as early as November 2020.

Experts broadly agree that stabilizing greenhouse gas (GHG) concentrations in the atmosphere to avoid dangerous GHG-induced climate change would require concerted efforts by all large emitting nations. The United States is the second largest emitter of GHG globally after China. Toward this purpose, the PA outlines goals and a structure for international cooperation to slow climate change and mitigate its impacts over decades to come..."
Climate change and Paris Agreement

Foreign Direct Investment in the United States: An Economic Analysis

"Foreign direct investment in the United States in 2015 increased by 83% over that recorded in 2014. (Note: The United States defines foreign direct investment as the ownership or control, directly or indirectly, by one foreign person [individual, branch, partnership, association, government, etc.] of 10% or more of the voting securities of an incorporated U.S. business enterprise or an equivalent interest in an unincorporated U.S. business enterprise [15 CFR §806.15 (a)(1)].) In 2015, according to U.S. Department of Commerce data, foreigners invested $379 billion in U.S. businesses and real estate, compared with the $207 billion invested in 2014. Foreign direct investments are highly sought after by many state and local governments that are struggling to create additional jobs in their localities. While some in Congress encourage such investment to offset the perceived negative economic effects of U.S. firms investing abroad, others are concerned about foreign acquisitions of U.S. firms that are considered essential to U.S. national and economic security..." 
Foreign Investment in U.S.

14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution: Civil Rights (1868)

"Passed by Congress June 13, 1866, and ratified July 9, 1868, the 14th amendment extended liberties and rights granted by the Bill of Rights to former slaves.

Following the Civil War, Congress submitted to the states three amendments as part of its Reconstruction program to guarantee equal civil and legal rights to black citizens. The major provision of the 14th amendment was to grant citizenship to “All persons born or naturalized in the United States,” thereby granting citizenship to former slaves. Another equally important provision was the statement that “nor shall any state deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.” The right to due process of law and equal protection of the law now applied to both the Federal and state governments. On June 16, 1866, the House Joint Resolution proposing the 14th amendment to the Constitution was submitted to the states. On July 28, 1868, the 14th amendment was declared, in a certificate of the Secretary of State, ratified by the necessary 28 of the 37 States, and became part of the supreme law of the land..."

14th Amendemen to Constitution

Prevent Mosquito Bites

"Protect yourself and your family from mosquito bites.
Use Insect Repellent.
Use Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)-registered insect repellents with one of the active ingredients below. When used as directed, EPA-registered insect repellents are proven safe and effective, even for pregnant and breastfeeding women..."

Mosquito bites

Keep Your Cool in Hot Weather

"Now is the time to prepare for the high temperatures that kill hundreds of people every year. Extreme heat caused 7,415 heat-related deaths in the United States from 1999 through 2010. Heat-related deaths and illness are preventable, yet many people die from extreme heat each year.

Take measures to stay cool, remain hydrated, and keep informed. Getting too hot can make you sick. You can become ill from the heat if your body can’t compensate for it and properly cool you off. The main things affecting your body’s ability to cool itself during extremely hot weather are:

• High humidity. When the humidity is high, sweat won’t evaporate as quickly, which keeps your body from releasing heat as fast as it may need to.
• Personal factors. Age, obesity, fever, dehydration, heart disease, mental illness, poor circulation, sunburn, and prescription drug and alcohol use can play a role in whether a person can cool off enough in very hot weather...."

Hot weather

An Update to the Budget and Economic Outlook: 2017 to 2027

"CBO projects that over the next decade, if current laws remained generally unchanged, budget deficits would eventually follow an upward trajectory in relation to the nation’s economic output, and federal debt would rise. Economic growth is projected to remain modest, averaging slightly above 2.0 percent through 2018 and averaging somewhat below that rate for the rest of the period through 2027. The budgetary and economic trends discussed in this report are similar to those CBO described in January, when the agency issued its previous estimates..."
Federal budget

National Park Maps

Thinking of going to a national parks this summer and need a map, take a look at the National Park Maps site.
National Parks