Yavapai County Community Health Services conducted an HIA of the Regional Mobility Management Implementation Plan for Yavapai County. The plan is designed to improve mobility and access within and around the county by addressing linkages between existing public transit services and improving infrastructure for cyclists and pedestrians. The HIA concluded that it would reduce the […]

The Florida Department of Health in Hillsborough County, in conjunction with the Hillsborough County Department of Parks, Recreation, and Conservation and Partners in Obesity Prevention, conducted a health impact assessment (HIA) of policy and programming changes that would allow businesses to provide free outdoor fitness classes in five parks and recreation centers in the Town […]

This HIA adds to the scope of a previous HIA that examined the relationship between liquor outlets and violence.  The project team assessed the relationship between high concentrations of liquor outlets and violence, with the goal of informing the current ‘non-conforming alcohol outlet amortization proposal’ to ensure that amortized alcohol outlet licenses do not relocate […]

Upstream Public Health conducted this health impact assessment (HIA) of proposed state legislation designed to reduce car use and ultimately meet greenhouse gas emission targets to help curb global warming. The proposed legislation would provide funds to Oregon’s six Metropolitan Planning Organizations (MPOs) to design and implement vehicle miles traveled (VMT) plans using a variety […]

This health impact assessment (HIA) evaluated the potential academic, health, and economic impacts of subsidizing the costs of student bus passes in Los Angeles County. The Los Angeles County School Attendance Task Force (SATF) was interested in developing a program to further subsidize the cost of bus passes for low-income students in order to increase […]

This HIA informed decisions regarding a proposed biomass energy facility in Placer County, California. The proposed facility would generate electricity from woody debris gathered from surrounding forest lands as a result of ongoing forest fire fuel load reduction programs. The Placer County Board of Supervisors will consider adoption of an Environmental Impact Report (EIR), and […]

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, in collaboration with the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health conducted an HIA to determine facilitators and barriers of a proposed food procurement policy in Los Angeles County. The proposed policy would require food purchasers, distributors, and vendors of food service to meet specified nutrition standards, including […]

The Governor of California proposed a budget for FY 2007/2008 that included provisions to reallocate $1.3 billion in gasoline sales tax revenue that had been targeted for transit operations, maintenance, and capital projects to other statewide programs. The HIA examined how the proposed cuts to transit funding could impact public health through air, water, and […]

Human Impact Partners, together with WISDOM and EX-Prisoners Organizing, conducted an HIA on the health impacts of Wisconsin’s revocation system on individuals and families. Revocation is re-incarceration for violating parole, probation, or extended supervision. It often does not result in a new criminal conviction. The HIA team reviewed literature and data from the Wisconsin Department […]

Located in the Houston metropolitan area, Pasadena is the second-largest city in Harris County, Texas, and is near two of the four largest refineries in the U.S. Pasadena’s Code of Ordinances states that the director of planning should coordinate the development of a city plan that covers multiple years. The HIA provided recommendations to the […]

This rapid health impact assessment (HIA), produced by a team of University of Washington graduate students, identifies potential health concerns and action items as the Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) launches a multiyear effort designed to improve infrastructure in the area surrounding King Street Station in the Pioneer Square and Chinatown-International District neighborhoods. The King […]

The City of Spokane is redeveloping the Division Street Gateway, a little over a mile of State Highway 2 that runs through the heart of downtown Spokane from its inception at Interstate 90 to its intersection with the Spokane River and north to the Gonzaga University neighborhood. This is essentially the city’s front door and […]

The purpose of this HIA was to inform policy decisions related to the placement and maintenance of community gardens in Knox County Tennessee. The HIA was used to educate policy makers about why certain communities might be better suited for a gardens. Although zoning can have a major effect on the placement of community gardens, […]

Between 2011 and 2014, the Oregon Health Authority Public Health Division conducted three health impact assessments (HIAs) on elements of Portland Metro’s Climate Smart Communities planning project. The Portland metro regional government requested the HIAs to ensure that decision-makers had access to public health evidence and best practices as they shaped and approved a greenhouse […]

This HIA, carried out by the Benton County Health Department, evaluated a series of policy-change scenarios to amend the existing county code for Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs). ADUs are small, self-contained residential units that are built on the same lot as—and are secondary to—an existing single-family home. The HIA was intended to inform a community […]

In March 2012, project partners received funding from the Michigan Department of Community Health Division of Environmental Health to conduct a Health Impact Assessment (HIA) of alternative development scenarios in the Michigan Street Corridor. The project is part of a larger effort funded by the Michigan State Housing Development Authority and the U.S. Department of […]

In partnership with the Southeastern Regional Planning & Economic Development District (SRPEDD) and Fall River Mass in Motion, the Metropolitan Area Planning Council conducted an HIA that examined the proposed Phase 2 of the Quequechan River Rail Trail (QRRT) project in the City of Fall River, Massachusetts. Phase 1 of the project was one mile […]

This HIA, conducted by Health Resources in Action, examined the impacts of a proposed multi-use development of land parcels in Boston’s Dorchester Codman Square neighborhood. The Codman Square Neighborhood Development Corporation (CSNDC) was considering potential uses of the adjacent land parcels at 100 Ballou Avenue. The HIA examined the potential uses of the parcels as […]

With funding from St. Luke’s Foundation, Vitruvian Planning and the Eagle (Idaho) Parks and Recreation Department conducted an HIA to understand how the city’s Pathways and Trails Plan might influence the health of area residents. Recommendations Focus on areas with the highest socio-economic need for bicycle paths, pedestrian trails, and accessible green spaces when selecting […]

This health impact assessment, or HIA, will inform the 2015 Georgia Qualified Allocation Plan for low-income housing tax credits. The plan is required each year as the Internal Revenue Service allocates housing tax credits to state agencies, which then award the credits to developers of qualified projects. The HIA, conducted by the Georgia Health Policy […]

The HIA addressed the health effects of zoning provisions on the nearby residents’ nutrition, physical activity and social cohesion during the interim-use phase of a major redevelopment and new land use plan for Atlanta’s Fort McPherson’s Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) process. The zoning provisions that govern permitted uses of land, green space and transportation […]

The Georgia Tech Center for Quality Growth and Regional Development conducted a rapid health impact assessment (HIA) on the Decatur, Georgia, Community Transportation Plan, focusing on potential health impacts of transportation and patterns of land use on safety, social connections, and physical activity. The HIA found that the plan could lead to a slight reduction […]

An HIA that examined the expected health benefits of proposed highway design changes (e.g., reducing lanes, adding sidewalks, medians, bike lanes and on-street parking) to the Buford Highway Corridor.  Special emphasis was placed on the potential impacts on physical activity and pedestrian injuries. – This Health Impact Assessment Report first appeared in The Cross-Sector Toolkit […]

The first-ever HIA on a major metropolitan transportation and comprehensive growth plan will be led by the Center for Quality Growth and Regional Development (CQGRD) at the Georgia Institute of Technology’s College of Architecture. Plan 2040—which is being conducted by the Atlanta Regional Commission, the local intergovernmental-coordination agency—integrates multiple aspects of regional planning, including transportation, […]

The Florida Department of Health in Lee County conducted an HIA of community-driven alternatives to the county’s neighborhood connectivity plan for the Tice historic community. The HIA investigated the potential health implications of community connectivity and access to green space and schools in the plan. The report concluded that the plan stood to benefit the […]

MetroPlan Orlando, in partnership with the University of Central Florida and the Winter Park Health Foundation, conducted the first transportation HIA in central Florida. The state Route 50 Bus Rapid Transit HIA analyzed the potential effects of implementing bus rapid transit along 22 miles of SR 50 on the physical, social, and emotional health of […]

The City of Orlando, Florida recently acquired an additional two acres to expand Loch Haven Park, a 45-acre park established in the 1930s and home to many of Orlando’s art and cultural institutions. The Loch Haven Park Improvement Plan was developed to take advantage of opportunities to improve park cohesion during this expansion, since many […]

Historically, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development policies have exposed people with a criminal history and their families to eviction and denial of housing. Human Impact Partners, in collaboration with the Ella Baker Center for Human Rights, conducted an HIA that assessed the health and equity impacts of public housing screening policies that exclude […]

Two options for the county’s General Plan Update were being considered: one that focused development in existing urban areas and another that would allow for the creation of new towns in the county. Some of the pathways and health issues explored included access to retail and services, preservation of agricultural land, community safety, water quality […]

The LA County Department of Public Health conducted an HIA to evaluate the potential health impacts of Measure H, a ballot initiative that would raise LA County’s sales tax by one-quarter of 1 percent for a decade to fund programs designed by the LA County Homeless Initiative. The HIA evaluated homelessness as a public health […]

The School of City and Regional Planning at the Georgia Institute of Technology conducted a rapid HIA to support healthy development in North Birmingham, Alabama, through implementation of the North Birmingham Community Framework Plan. The goal of the plan, created in conjunction with the first comprehensive plan update in 50 years, is to enhance the […]

The Seattle and King County Public Health Department, in collaboration with the Puget Sound Clean Air Agency, conducted an HIA to evaluate the health impacts of the State Route 520 bridge replacement and HOV project. The HIA focused on several pathways and health issues including air quality, carbon emissions, traffic injury and opportunities for physical […]

The Clark County Community Planning Department in Vancouver, Washington, developed a Sub-Area Plan to revitalize Highway 99 and surrounding neighborhoods. Clark County Public Health conducted an HIA, which was included in the plan. The HIA explored the plan’s potential effects on several health issues, including access to healthy foods, opportunities for physical activity, reliance on […]

Public health graduate students at Brigham Young University conducted an HIA to analyze the potential health effects of a bill proposed in the Utah Legislature to require prescribers to get prior authorization from an insurer for any opioid prescription that exceeds 90-morphine equivalents; for benzodiazepines prescribed to patients already taking opioids; and for new chronic […]

Public health graduate students at Brigham Young University conducted an HIA to analyze potential health effects of the Utah Medical Cannabis Act (UMCA), a ballot initiative to legalize the use and production of medical marijuana in the state. The authors investigated how the UMCA might affect potential medical marijuana users, adolescents, economically disadvantaged individuals, and […]

The City of Billings, Montana, in conjunction with consultant firm AECOM, has created a 20-year master plan for the South Billings Boulevard Urban Renewal District (SBBURD). The South Billings Master Plan provides a set of goals that will guide land use, transportation development, community design, and capital improvements through 2032. The goal of the proposed […]

This HIA seeks to inform decisions around the construction of a new jail and juvenile transition center in Muskegon County Michigan. The HIA will focus on environmental and social determinants of health including environmental hazards based on site selection, access to services and quality of those services, and unemployment. The HIA will determine likely effects […]

The City of Worcester is beginning a comprehensive neighborhood revitalization strategy in the Union Hill area, a neighborhood that has experienced decline in recent decades. The Worcester Division of Public Health, along with the Massachusetts Department of Public Health and staff from the Worcester Office of Economic Development, will conduct a rapid health impact assessment […]

This health impact assessment (HIA) addressed a Massachusetts-specific version of the federal Healthy Families Act. The pathways and health issues explored included: 1) the spread of communicable diseases, such as influenza and stomach flu through workers at restaurants, schools and nursing homes; 2) the income and stress-related impacts of loss of salary and employer retaliation […]

In 2008, the City of Baltimore, Maryland launched a multiyear effort to comprehensively revise the city’s zoning code, which had not been updated for forty years. In order to help ensure that the revision considered the role zoning can play in creating healthier communities, a group of researchers at Johns Hopkins collaborated with the city […]

The Kentucky River Area Development District (KRADD) and partners from Jenkins, Kentucky, conducted an HIA to describe the health, social, and economic development impacts of the Elkhorn Lake Improvement Project, which involves repairing and strengthening the dam built in 1912, removing invasive water lilies, and improving green space and recreational facilities. Elkhorn Lake serves as […]

Vitruvian Planning LLC conducted a rapid HIA on behalf of Boise, Idaho, that analyzed the potential health effects of building a new library in the Bown Crossing neighborhood. The study examined the impacts of programming or services offered at the library, with a focus on youth and older adults, and of the location selection. Findings […]

Proctor Creek in the Atlanta metropolitan area has been placed on the impaired waters list because it does not meet state water quality standards for fecal coliform. The topography, prevalence of impervious surfaces in the watershed, and strains on the combined sewer system have contributed to pervasive flooding in the communities along Proctor Creek and […]

The University of Florida Department of Urban and Regional Planning, in partnership with the Florida Department of Health, conducted a rapid health impact assessment of proposed changes to built environment and transportation access in the Tower Triangle area of the city of Gainesville, in Alachua County, Florida. The HIA focused on how these proposed changes […]

A health impact assessment was completed for a master plan for the South Lincoln housing redevelopment owned by the Denver Housing Authority (DHA). EnviroHealth Consulting completed the HIA and subcontracted to MITHUN firm who was hired by DHA to complete the master plan. In the neighborhood, approximately 38% live in poverty, more than half of […]

Community Health Councils Inc., along with other members of the Los Angeles County Healthy Community Collaborative, conducted a health impact assessment (HIA) of California Senate Bill 622 (S.B. 622), which would impose a penny-per-ounce tax on distributors of sugar-sweetened beverages manufactured in the state. All revenue (taxes, penalties, and interest) collected under S.B. 622 would […]

Community Health Councils, Inc. conducted a health impact assessment (HIA) to analyze the impact of current policies regulating the density of fast food restaurants in South Los Angeles (South LA), and the potential impact of the proposed new community plans and implementing ordinances. From 2007 to 2010, the City of Los Angeles instituted an Interim […]

The HIA addressed an update of the Humboldt County General Plan. Three growth alternatives to accommodate future population were being considered in the General Plan Update (GPU): 1) denser development in urban areas; 2) some growth to exurban areas; and 3) unrestricted growth throughout the county. Pathways and health issues explored included comments on six […]

California’s Senate Bill 375 mandates that each regional government in California develop and adopt plans to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, in part through developing Regional Transportation Plans and Sustainable Communities Strategies that will guide local land use, transportation, and other decisions important to greenhouse gas emissions.  California Rural Legal Assistance (CRLA) conducted two health impact […]

The San Francisco departments of Public Health (SFDPH) and Planning used the Sustainable Communities Index (SCI) to describe community assets in the Central Corridor and make recommendations for a plan that will guide development between Market, Townsend, Second, and Sixth streets. SCI, developed by SFDPH in 2007, is a system used to analyze communities based […]

The Childhood Obesity Prevention Research Program at Arkansas Children’s Research Institute, with technical assistance from Upstream Public Health, conducted an HIA to examine the potential impacts of a state farm-to-school (F2S) coordinator position on the health of the state’s public school students. As of 2017, nearly 1 in 4 Arkansas kindergarteners were overweight or obese, […]

The Gila County Division of Health and Emergency Management and Paramount Public Health Services conducted an HIA of a proposed trail along a portion of the Pinal Creek Basin in Globe, Arizona. The HIA explored potential health impacts associated with physical activity, community enrichment and civic pride, social cohesion, vehicle trips, public and personal safety, […]

The Red Dog Mine, in remote northwest Alaska, is the world’s largest producer of zinc. The company proposed an expansion of the mine. In evaluating this request, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) determined that it would be necessary to do an environmental impact statement (EIS) to assess the impact of the proposed activities on […]

The U.S. Minerals Management Service (MMS) undertook an environmental impact statement (EIS) to inform federal offshore oil and gas plans for five years, spanning 2007-2012.  Areas in the Chukchi and Beaufort Seas off Alaska’s North Coast were among those being considered for oil and gas leasing. The North Slope Borough collaborated with the Alaska Inter-Tribal […]

This HIA is integrated into the Bureau of Land Management’s new integrated activity plan/environmental impact statement (IAP/EIS) that will guide the agency’s management of the region, including leasing and development of oil and gas resources. The HIA addresses a range of health considerations, including, for example, how future oil and gas exploration and development activities […]

An HIA that focused on how the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (the 2002 Farm Bill) might affect health. The HIA explored health impacts on dietary consumption, food safety, rural income and quality of life, air pollution, and environmental degradation. The HIA found no clear relationship between changes in farm subsidy policy […]

This mental health impact assessment, or MHIA, focused on a proposal to update the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s (EEOC) Policy Guidance on the Consideration of Arrest Records in Employment Decisions. Having undergone an update for the first time in over twenty years, one proposed change was to prohibit employers from asking about arrests as […]

Oregon Public Health Institute, in partnership with Clackamas County Public Health and the Clackamas County Department of Transportation and Development, conducted an HIA in 2014 on a road safety audit conducted on a half-mile section of McLoughlin Boulevard (also known as OR 99E) in Jennings Lodge, Oregon. Its aim was to give transportation department staff […]

The University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute conducted an HIA to inform a decision on the status of the Wisconsin Transitional Jobs Program during the spring 2013 session that will shape the 2013-2015 biennial state budget. The HIA focused on the immediate health effects of changes in income related to employment, such as diet, alcohol […]

The Burlington District Office of the Vermont Department of Health conducted a rapid HIA of proposed street improvements on a 2.8-mile corridor of North Avenue in Burlington, Vermont. The HIA included a population health profile and a review of public transportation infrastructure and pedestrian, bike, and motorist facilities along the corridor. The proposed upgrades include […]

The Hood River County Health Department conducted an HIA to examine the health impacts of rezoning 30 acres of former orchards to allow recreational development. The Hood River Valley Parks and Recreation District purchased the land in 2007. The land is zoned Exclusive Farm Use (EFU) and land use planning as well as potential health […]

The Douglas County Health Department conducted an HIA to inform the Omaha Planning Department and City Council’s Deer Park Neighborhood Redevelopment Plan, which will rehabilitate 33 existing properties, construct five new homes, and assemble a range of partners to address future needs of neighborhood residents. Housing has implications for such health issues as lead poisoning, […]

This project is informing Kansas legislators of the potential health risks and benefits of a bill that would facilitate the construction of a new casino in southeast Kansas. While previous discussions about casino development have been limited to potential economic benefit and pathological gambling, the HIA sought to bring additional health effects to the table. […]

The New Jersey Health Impact Collaborative, in partnership with Together North Jersey, completed an HIA to inform the development of a Complete Corridor plan for improvements to an arterial road, Bloomfield Avenue, which transects four towns in Essex County, New Jersey. The HIA assessed the potential impacts related to road lane reductions and lane reconfigurations […]

The Delaware General Health District conducted an HIA of the proposed 350,000-square-foot Simon Property Group and Tanger Outlets Premium Outlet Mall to be built on approximately 50 acres in Berkshire Township, Ohio. Because of the planned development’s very large geographic footprint in a mostly rural area with access to a nearby interstate, residents expressed concerns […]

The Minnesota Department of Health conducted an HIA of the potential health effects of the small area plan for the Lincoln Park neighborhood of Duluth. The HIA analyzed how the plan could affect community health and offered recommendations to maximize potential benefits and reduce negative impacts, with a focus on four topics: land use and […]

The Metropolitan Area Planning Council (MAPC), in partnership with the Massachusetts Department of Public Health (MDPH) and the Conservation Law Foundation (CLF), conducted an HIA of three transit-oriented development projects—Mission Hill/Parcel 25, Bartlett Place/Nuestra Comunidad, and Madison Park/Tropical Foods—in Roxbury, Massachusetts. The HIA informed the projects’ development process and helped define the health metrics to […]

In 2012, Human Impact Partners worked with the Los Angeles Community Action Network (LA CAN), the Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles (LAFLA), and Physicians for Social Responsibility Los Angeles (PSR-LA) to conduct a rapid HIA of the proposed construction of the 72,000 seat Farmers Field football stadium in downtown Los Angeles. The HIA included […]

The Tri-County Health Department conducted an HIA of Sheridan’s Comprehensive Plan update, which is intended to help frame policies that maximize positive health effects and prioritize implementation strategies. The previous Comprehensive Plan, adopted in 2004, had focused on programmatic municipal changes and guidance for specific properties in the community. One objective for the new plan […]

The Center for Quality Growth and Regional Development (CQGRD), a research center of the Georgia Institute of Technology’s College of Architecture, conducted a comprehensive HIA on the site of a former Ford assembly plant. The location contained several contaminated industrial sites that were cleaned in preparation for the repurposing of this land. The 122-acre site, […]

The HIA looked at the proposed redevelopment of the Derby District in Colorado’s Commerce City commercial core. The HIA considered how the redevelopment might affect issues, such as opportunities for physical activity; access to supermarkets that stock fruits, vegetables and other healthy foods; traffic and personal safety. The HIA made many specific recommendations for measures […]

The Denver Environmental Health Department is conducting a health impact assessment (HIA) of the neighborhood plans for two North Denver neighborhoods: Globeville and Elyria Swansea. The neighborhood plans are currently being updated through a community engagement process. The HIA will make recommendations for neighborhood planning changes that can positively impact health in these communities with […]

The Kings Ridge apartments have been traditionally plagued by crime, poverty and poor health. A new management company has purchased the property and developed a community renovation plan which is designed to improve the health, safety and quality of life of residents. This HIA examines the plan and progress, looking at its effects on indicators […]

Researchers from Florida Gulf Coast University, in partnership with the Tice Historic Community Planning Panel, completed a rapid HIA of a road-widening project in a primarily low-income minority community in Lee County, Florida. In 2010 Lee County Department of Transportation completed the design plans for Ortiz Avenue. These design plans identified a four-lane, divided road […]

The Pima County Health Department, in partnership with the City of Tucson, Arizona, conducted a rapid HIA of proposed infrastructure improvements to South 12th Avenue in Tucson. The proposed improvements included bus shelters, sidewalks, lighting, and green space. Using data analyses already conducted by the University of Arizona, the HIA examined potential health impacts associated […]

In 2011, a Colorado-based nonprofit conducted an HIA to determine the impact of South Thornton’s revitalization subarea plan on healthy eating and active living. The HIA focused on key indicators derived from the Healthy Development Measurement Tool: public infrastructure and access to goods and services; social connections and communication; and transportation options. Potential health outcomes […]

The U.S. Minerals Management Service (MMS) proposed to lease offshore areas in Alaska’s northern coastal region, and undertook an environmental impact statement (EIS) to inform their decision making on this proposal. The North Slope Borough, in collaboration with the Alaska Inter-Tribal Council (a nonprofit organization representing Alaska’s tribes), completed a rapid HIA of the draft […]

The Special Project for Families Affected by Incarceration and the Louisville Department of Public Health and Wellness conducted an HIA to examine the impact of using a family responsibility statement during the sentencing of a parent or primary caregiver. In the Louisville metropolitan area, the growing and disparate impact of parental incarceration on children’s health […]

Mid-City Community Advocacy Network and its Youth Council worked with Human Impact Partners to conduct an HIA to examine health and equity implications of a skatepark proposal in City Heights, a neighborhood in San Diego. Obesity rates in City Heights are higher than those in San Diego County overall, and the neighborhood has an inadequate […]

This HIA, led by the Multnomah County Health Department in collaboration with several other organizations, examined the health impacts of proposed alternatives for a renovation and expansion of the Interstate 5 Columbia River crossing between Oregon and Washington. The HIA was completed to inform an environmental impact statement (EIS) for the project being undertaken by […]

Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles, Housing Long Beach, and Human Impact Partners conducted a health impact assessment (HIA) of the Housing Element of the City of Long Beach General Plan. This update is required every eight years by the State of California. The HIA focused on housing affordability, quality, and location. The HIA made […]

This health impact assessment will inform the development of a five-year fair and affordable housing plan by incorporating potential health impacts, social equity, and environmental justice into future housing policies The plan will also incorporate findings of an affordable housing study being conducted by Michigan State University. FAHP’s planning process serves as the framework for a community-wide […]

The Baltimore City Health Department conducted an HIA of the West North Avenue Streetscape Plan, an urban redevelopment project for a major east-west corridor in the city. The HIA sought to determine the impacts of alternative streetscape design features on the health of residents and to identify design priorities that would promote community health. Consultation […]

The Center for Health Equity at Drexel University School of Public Health conducted a rapid HIA on the potential health impacts of a slot machine casino under construction in a residential area of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The HIA identified five major pathways through which the casino could impact health: employment, traffic congestion, physical activity, problem gambling […]

Hennepin County’s Department of Housing, Community Works and Transit (HCWT) conducted an HIA to inform planning decisions on the proposed Bottineau Transitway. The transitway proposal would create a new bus or light rail line extending from downtown Minneapolis through North Minneapolis and into neighboring suburbs. The HIA was coordinated with the Draft Environmental Impact Statement […]

The purpose of this Health Impact Assessment (HIA) was to assess the potential health impacts of the expansion of the Ice Age Trail on broad determinants of health, including the built environment, economy, and social connectedness. The Ice Age Trail is a walking path that traverses the state of Wisconsin, highlighting the geological features resulting from […]

Rutgers University’s Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy, in partnership with New Jersey Future and Little Egg Harbor Township, will complete an HIA to assess the potential health implications of a coordinated voluntary buyout strategy in the Mystic Island area, which was severely affected by Hurricane Sandy. Buyout programs use federal funds to help […]

The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health conducted an HIA to investigate how 2007 California Senate Bill 120 and 2008 Senate Bill 1420 could impact the obesity epidemic. The proposed laws outline requirements for chain restaurants to provide nutritional information. The HIA found that menu labeling in these restaurants would likely result in modest […]

Adams Park is a 68 acre greenspace in Omaha, Nebraska located right next to the Malcolm X birth site and two elementary schools.  The surrounding community is predominantly African American and experiences significant health disparities as well as diminished access to healthy, affordable food.  – This Health Impact Assessment Report first appeared in The Cross-Sector […]

The Columbia Transit system is stressed due to increased student ridership, new routes, budget cuts, and higher fuel costs. The Columbia/Boone County Department of Health and Human Services conducted a rapid health impact assessment (HIA) in response to the Columbia Transit System Expansion HIA completed in 2012. The Columbia, Missouri City Council requested an HIA […]

The HIA addressed a proposed plan for twelve miles of pedestrian and biking trails under the elevated Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) tracks from East Oakland to Hayward, known as the East Bay Greenway. Some of the influences on health that were considered include, the opportunity for increased physical activity, the greening of the landscape, […]

The Washington County Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Division, in partnership with the Washington County Department of Land Use and Transportation, conducted a rapid HIA in 2014 to identify the potential health impacts of building a bicycle and pedestrian bridge to join two sections of SW Augusta Lane over Beaverton Creek in […]

In fall 2011, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) awarded the Wisconsin Capital Region a $2 million, three-year Sustainable Community Regional Planning Grant (SCRPG), with the Capital Area Regional Planning Commission (CARPC) serving as the lead agency. Recognizing that regional challenges —healthy environment, mobility, economic opportunities for all, and quality of life— […]

The Colorado School of Public Health and Colorado’s Children’s Hospital conducted a rapid health impact assessment (HIA) on the final regulatory structure for retail marijuana in Colorado. Amendment 64 legalized and set preliminary regulations for recreational marijuana sales to adults over 21 years of age. The HIA intended to inform the State’s final regulatory structure. […]

University of Washington graduate students, in partnership with the Seattle Departments of Transportation and Planning and Development, conducted a rapid HIA of the Delridge Corridor Project. The plan is part of a broader city effort to transform major roads and neighboring streets into safer and healthier public places. The health pathways explored included zoning, mobility, […]

The Kentucky Environmental Foundation, in collaboration with the Purchase District Health Department, conducted an HIA to inform decisions on whether to retire or retrofit the coal-fired Shawnee Fossil Plant in McCracken County. The HIA also informed the Tennessee Valley Authority’s Integrated Resource Planning, which guides future energy production scenarios. Data indicate that rates of asthma, […]

Davidson Design for Life, in collaboration with Davidson College students in a Public Health Policy, Practice and Ethics course, conducted a health impact assessment (HIA) of a proposed regional commuter rail project connecting Mooresville to Charlotte, North Carolina using existing Norfolk Southern rail. The project would offer increased freight business, as well as the opportunity […]

This HIA informed the Illinois General Assembly’s deliberations on legislative proposals to seek a waiver from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to ban the use of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits for purchasing sugar-sweetened beverages. – This Health Impact Assessment Report first appeared in The Cross-Sector Toolkit for Health. The Cross-Sector Toolkit for […]

The HIA addressed the Pittsburg Railroad Avenue Specific Plan, which included a new commuter rail (BART) station located in the middle of State Highway 4. The proposed station would be surrounded by “transit-oriented development,” which would include almost 1,600 housing units, 450,000 square feet of retail and commercial space, and pedestrian and bike improvements. All […]

This HIA studied a proposed amendment to Ordinance 01-67, the Farmland Protection Program, which has operated for 10 years and resulted in the permanent protection of over 5,500 acres of farmland. The amendment would broaden annual investments to include small and organic farms producing fruits, vegetables, and meat, and is intended in part to increase […]

A graduate class at the University of Washington conducted an HIA of the Pioneer Square 2015 plan, A Strategy for Seattle’s First Neighborhood. Pioneer Square, Seattle’s original neighborhood, is home to a large percentage of the city’s mentally ill, disabled, and homeless individuals and families. The HIA considered the connections between neighborhood characteristics, such as […]

Upstream Public Health, a public policy non-profit based in Portland, Oregon, conducted a novel health impact assessment (HIA) of proposed legislation in Oregon. Oregon House Bill (HB) 2800 would provide state funds to purchase locally-grown foods for schools, set up school teaching gardens, and conduct nutrition education. The lessons learned from this project could be […]

Community Solutions, with Michael Singer Studio, conducted an HIA of the development of a revitalization and sustainability plan for Northeast, a neighborhood in Hartford, Connecticut. The HIA examined how changes to existing land use, utilities, housing conditions, open space, and access to transportation and healthy food could positively affect residents’ health, safety, and economic opportunities. […]

University of Pennsylvania graduate students and fellows conducted this health impact assessment (HIA) on the proposed Spring Garden Street Greenway in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The 2.2 mile long greenway would connect the existing Delaware River and Schuylkill River Trails. The HIA examined how the greenway could potentially impact health through increased opportunities for active transportation and […]

The South Heartland District Health Department, with technical assistance from the Douglas County Health Department and Human Impact Partners, conducted an HIA of implementation of Phase 2 of a nuisance abatement plan in Superior, Nebraska. The plan was intended to help identify, enforce, and resolve problems such as vacant or unsecured properties, dilapidated structures, junk […]

The 90-mile Genesee Valley Greenway (GVG) State Park in western New York is an open-space corridor that passes through woodlands, wetlands, valleys, farmlands, glacial gorges, and historic villages as part of an interstate trail system. This HIA focused on the northernmost 50-mile portion in Monroe and Livingston counties. Addressing current issues related to public access, […]

This HIA assessed a proposal by the City of Omaha to include a center turn lane on South 24th Street – the major corridor through Omaha’s Latino community. This type of change, which involves going from four lanes to three, is commonly called a road diet. The HIA considered the impacts on the top concerns for South […]

The Oklahoma City Planning Department, in partnership with the Oklahoma City-County Health Department and the city Office of Sustainability, conducted an HIA of “planokc,” a comprehensive plan consisting of eight major elements: future land use; transportation; environmental and natural resources; communities; preservation, appearance, and culture; parks and recreation; economic development; and public services. The HIA […]

This HIA provides decision makers with a review of potential positive and negative human health impacts related to the proposed Wishbone Hill Mine (WHM). The proposed project area is located in the Matanuska-Susitna valley near Sutton, Alaska. – This Health Impact Assessment Report first appeared in The Cross-Sector Toolkit for Health. The Cross-Sector Toolkit for […]

IndyGo, the Indianapolis Public Transportation Corporation, proposed tripling existing bus service in the Greater Indianapolis area. The Indiana University Center for Health Policy, in collaboration with the county health department and the local metropolitan planning organization, developed a curriculum for a graduate level HIA course. In the first half of the course, students were exposed […]

The Kansas Water Vision plan calls for an evaluation of uses of lower-quality water in the state so the Kansas Health Institute conducted a health impact assessment to examine how municipal water reuse might affect the health of state residents. The study analyzed seven factors related to water reuse that could affect health in Kansas: […]

The Center for Quality Growth and Regional Development (CQGRD) partnered with the Georgia Department of Public Health to conduct an HIA to explore the health impact associated with the redevelopment of a downtown corridor in Macon, Georgia. The population in the study area faces a variety of health challenges, such as low socioeconomic status and […]

Davidson Design for Life conducted a health impact assessment of the existing food environment in Davidson, North Carolina. The HIA sought to inform partnering stakeholders and the Davidson Board of Commissioners on ways to increase access to local, healthy foods and ways to increase consumption of fresh fruits and vegetables for vulnerable populations such as […]

Benton County Health Services (BCHS) conducted an HIA to assess potential impacts of a 25 mile-per-hour speed limit on a one-mile stretch of Highway 99W, which is South Third Street, in south Corvallis, Oregon. The HIA investigated potential impacts that a lower speed limit would have on active transportation, traffic safety, social networks, and access […]

The HIA addressed a decision about where to locate affordable housing along a high-traffic transit and retail corridor in Richmond and El Cerrito, California. The HIA was done in conjunction with a planning process for revitalization of the corridor. Pathways and health issues explored included neighborhood “health assets” (e.g., parks, trails, community centers, schools, transit […]

This rapid health impact assessment (RHIA) evaluated the mental health effects of Massachusetts bill S. 900, which proposed to require that the state expunge criminal records for individuals who committed their offenses before the age of 21. Students in the healthy cities course in the Department of Urban Studies and Planning at the Massachusetts Institute […]

At the request of the developer, Actual Communities LLC, Safe and Healthy Communities conducted a rapid HIA of Waters’ Edge, a proposed development for residents 55 and older in Fort Collins, Colorado. The HIA focused on maximizing health benefits for the 900 homes, retail businesses, and services proposed for the community and on how residents […]

The San Francisco Department of Public Health conducted an HIA in response to community requests in the Mission, South of Market, and Potrero Hill neighborhoods. The HIA addressed a range of factors in the community plans that could affect health, including housing affordability; the potential that low-income residents could be displaced; the availability of safe […]

The Kansas University School of Preventive Medicine and Public Health, in partnership with the Topeka Metropolitan Transit Authority, conducted an HIA to inform the implementation and possible expansion of a bike share program in Topeka, Kansas. The assessment looked at how bike sharing, cycling, and active transport could affect physical activity levels, safety and incidences […]

The Council on Crime and Justice conducted an HIA to inform the Minnesota State Legislature’s decision to reform state drug sentencing laws by providing evidence-based information about the potential health impacts on individuals, families, and communities. The findings and recommendations show that particular changes in the proposed legislation could yield positive (or negative) health outcomes […]

Maricopa County Department of Public Health (MCDPH) conducted an HIA to evaluate county departments’ food procurement policies and nutrition and sodium standards. The HIA explored how proposed policies intended to reduce sodium consumption through better access to affordable, healthy food options could improve public health and cut costs for the county by lowering residents’ blood […]

The San Francisco Department of Public Health conducted an HIA to analyze pedestrian safety conditions around the proposed Jewish Home of San Francisco, a senior housing and retail project along the Mission Street corridor in the Outer Mission/Excelsior neighborhoods. The report analyzed the site’s characteristics for transit, transportation, neighborhood demographics, and pedestrian injury factors, and […]

The UCLA School of Public Health, in collaboration with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Project MOVE, conducted an HIA on the health impacts of the Sacramento Safe Routes to School Program. The program seeks to reduce the number of children killed while walking and biking to school, and foster an active lifestyle among […]

Memphis and Shelby County Office of Sustainability conducted an HIA as part of the Mid-South Regional Greenprint and Sustainability Plan, funded through a U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Sustainable Communities Regional Planning Grant. The plan is a multifaceted, 25-year project with the goal of creating connected communities in the tri-state region where all […]

This HIA informed revisions to the City of Minneapolis Above the Falls Master Plan, which will guide redevelopment of an industrial area along the upper Mississippi riverfront in Minneapolis. The Master Plan, being drafted by the City of Minneapolis Department of Community Planning & Economic Development, is intended to increase public access and use of […]

Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families, in partnership with Children’s HealthWatch, conducted an HIA to examine the potential health effects of creating a state-level, refundable earned income tax credit (EITC). Specifically, it considered how an EITC could affect Arkansas residents’ general health, children’s health, maternal depressive symptoms, low birth weight, childhood development delays, and obesity.  […]

The purpose of this HIA was to assess the impact of an alcohol outlet density policy on the community’s health, specifically underage drinking and drinking and driving behaviors. While there was no specific policy under review at the onset of the project, strategies to limit liquor-licensing practices at the municipal level were evaluated, specifically a […]

The La Plaza Vieja Neighborhood Association, residents of Arrowhead Village, Hermosa Vida community organizers, the Department of Anthropology at Northern Arizona University, and an independent HIA consultant conducted a rapid HIA to examine the potential health effects a local rezoning proposal intended to accommodate new student housing in Flagstaff, Arizona. The HIA found that the […]

The Colorado School of Public Health and Children’s Hospital Colorado collaborated on a pilot project to integrate HIA into hospital community benefit activities. The HIA conducted a program assessment and reviewed literature and evidence-based approaches to implementing school-based health centers (SBHCs). SBHCs provide medical and nonmedical services to children who are underinsured, uninsured, or do […]

The HIA provided a retrospective analysis of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD’s) HOPE VI efforts to rebuild two affordable housing projects in San Francisco, California. The goal of the HIA was to highlight health impacts of redevelopment of public housing more generally by building capacity to conduct HIAs and informing the […]

In 2014, the Davidson Design for Life initiative conducted an HIA to predict the health impacts of improving worksite wellness in Davidson, North Carolina. Physical working conditions, such as exposure to hazardous chemicals, can affect a person’s health. Schedules, commuting time, and other work-related issues can also impact health and well-being. The organization reviewed literature, […]

This HIA was designed to examine the health implications of policies contained within a proposed community plan for Tumalo, Oregon. The Tumalo Community Plan (TCP) was one small part of a larger, comprehensive 20-year plan update for Deschutes County. The determinants of health that were assessed by this HIA include: physical activity; traffic safety; “rural […]

This HIA, conducted by the Maine Network of Healthy Communities, was designed to assist a land trust and affiliated communities with prioritizing several proposed trails in an urban setting. In the 1990s, the Androscoggin Land Trust and the National Park Service’s River and Trails Program developed the Androscoggin River Corridor Greenway Plan. This HIA assessed […]

Utah legislators were urged by coalitions and associations to consider raising the legal age of tobacco purchases from 19 to 21. During the 2015 legislative session, In response to requests from civic coalitions and associations, Representative Powell proposed a bill to raise the legal age of tobacco purchases from 19 to 21 in 2015. A […]

Once a vibrant commercial corridor, the communities along Claiborne Avenue in the Central City neighborhood of New Orleans have suffered economic divestment since the 1960s. Because Claiborne is a major transportation and commercial artery, the corridor is slated for investment and redevelopment, and the Livable Claiborne Communities Initiative (LCC) would like to ensure that health […]

The HIA assessed the health benefits and obstacles to the Xcel Energy Corridor Trail. The trail is planned as part of a larger bicycle and transportation plan. Some of the pathways and health issues explored included safety, accessibility, social capital, social interaction, mental health, physical activity, water and air quality, land use and traffic. The […]

The National Indian Justice Center conducted an HIA of a proposed utility-scale solar project that focused on potential health risks and benefits for neighboring Native American communities in the Mojave Desert. Key decision-makers included the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), the California Energy Commission, the Department of Defense, and private developers. The renewable energy project […]

HIAs are mandated for new development projects in Prince George’s County, Maryland (County Bill CB-41-2011). This legislation builds health into policies, provides a tool to reduce the incidence of preventable diseases and injuries, and requests that the county Planning Board refer site plans at specific stages to the county Health Department for HIA review. The […]

A planned expansion of Rotary Park in Bullhead City would feature development of approximately 38 acres to include additional soccer, football, and baseball fields, as well as parking. The Mohave County Department of Public Health used a $20,000 grant to conduct a rapid HIA to consider the health impacts of the prospective park expansion. The […]

A rapid HIA completed by a student at the School of Public Health at the University of California at Berkeley to examine the potential health outcomes as joint use agreements eligible for state funding are expanded under California AB 346. – This Health Impact Assessment Report first appeared in The Cross-Sector Toolkit for Health. The […]

This HIA reviewed the final recommendations of the Revive Cincinnati: Neighborhoods of the Mill Creek Valley for health impacts to adjacent neighborhood residents arising from infrastructure improvements to Interstate 75. I-75 is a major north-south transportation corridor that bisects the City of Cincinnati and impacts a number of diverse neighborhoods. – This Health Impact Assessment […]

Clark County Public Health conducted a rapid HIA to examine the potential health impacts of Vancouver, Washington’s comprehensive plan revision. The HIA focused on two determinants of health: physical activity and access to healthy food. The HIA found that the proposed planning, policy and zoning changes will likely have positive impacts on the community by […]

Davidson Design for Life, in collaboration with Davidson College students in a Public Health Policy, Practice, and Ethics course, conducted an HIA of the current Davidson street design standards to inform a rewrite of the town’s planning ordinance, scheduled to be adopted in the 2014-2015 fiscal year. The HIA considered the impacts of street design […]

The Cuyahoga County Board of Health (CCBH) is conducting an HIA to examine the health effects of the Transportation for Livable Communities Initiative (TLCI) planning project for key intersections of the four mile stretch of Euclid Avenue in Euclid, Ohio.  At this time, the plan intends to produce specific recommendations for 1) pedestrian and bicycle […]

The Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department, in collaboration with the city of Puyallup, conducted an HIA to assess potential health impacts of a proposed redevelopment plan for the neighborhood of South Hill in Washington state. The HIA focused on identifying existing health conditions, risks and needs in the community, and to assess the long term impacts […]

The University of Texas, El Paso conducted an HIA focused on public transportation. The HIA solicited community input regarding transportation needs within Doña Ana County, New Mexico, between Las Cruces and rural towns in southern areas of the state. The final report recommended designing public transportation routes to increase residents’ access to health-promoting and educational […]

This HIA examined the potential health impacts of a proposal to build a new 14-mile light-rail line in Baltimore. Some of the pathways explored included access to safe outdoor activities, construction issues and air quality. HIA practitioners examined asthma, chronic lower respiratory disease, social cohesion, obesity, physical activity, bicycle and pedestrian risks, mental health, and […]

California’s Senate Bill 375 mandates that each regional government in California develop and adopt plans to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, in part through developing Regional Transportation Plans and Sustainable Communities Strategies that will guide local land use, transportation, and other decisions important to greenhouse gas emissions. This is one of two HIAs CRLA is conducting […]

The Florida Department of Health in Hillsborough County conducted an HIA on the EPA Brownfields Area-Wide Plan, a proposal to redevelop various sites in Tampa’s University Area Community. The HIA investigated the potential health effects of the plan and whether they would disproportionately affect certain populations, such as racial and ethnic minorities, individuals with physical […]

The HIA addressed a proposed residential and commercial development at the Jack London Gateway (JLG) in Oakland, California. The project included 55 units of low-income senior housing and an additional 14,000 feet of retail space in an underutilized parking lot of an existing shopping plaza. The site is close to several interstate freeways and to […]

MacArthur Transit Village project was presented in October 2006 at the MacArthur BART Citizen’s Planning Committee meeting. This HIA was conducted by the UC Berkeley Health Impact Group to evaluate the health effects of the proposed project, with the goal that it would be submitted to the Citizen’s Planning Committee and other public agencies. A […]

The Fort DuPont Master Planning and Feasibility Analysis began in October 2012 with the aim of determining the best future use of the underutilized 450-acre site owned/managed by the State. The adoption of a final master plan for the Fort DuPont complex will set the direction for future development of the site; however, the plan […]

As part of their Denver Healthy People 2011 and subsequent Denver Healthy People 2020 initiatives, the City of Denver conducted an HIA of the plans to renovate a portion of the Westerly Creek canal system proposed by the Westerly Creek Connection (WCC). Westerly Creek is a waterway that flows along the border of the cities […]

The Boston Public Health Commission conducted an HIA to inform upcoming decisions by the mayor and City Council on proposed changes to the Boston Living Wage Ordinance. The law, first passed in 1998, was designed to ensure that employees of city contractors would earn a wage that allows a family of four to live at […]

East Harlem has lost more than 1,500 affordable housing units since 2011 and is projected to lose nearly 7,000 more over the next decade. The New York Academy of Medicine conducted a rapid health impact assessment to examine the potential health effects of the mandatory inclusionary housing policy outlined in New York City’s East Harlem […]

The Nashville Area Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) is creating a 30-mile transportation system between downtown Nashville and Gallatin, Tennessee. The three transit-oriented development (TOD) sites will be Madison, Hendersonville, and Gallatin. The Nashville MPO initiated a Northeast Corridor Study to develop a strategy for implementation. The HIA looked at design factors that would promote engaging […]

This health impact assessment will inform and influence planning and implementation decisions related to the establishment of a trail and greenway network traversing diverse communities on Cuyahoga County’s eastside. The Eastside Greenway was initiated to connect the eastside of Cleveland and thirteen eastside suburbs through a unified trail system, connecting neighborhoods to parks, employment and […]

This health impact assessment (HIA) informed the proposed Federal Boulevard framework plan, with a specific focus on the light-rail stations at 60th Avenue and Federal Boulevard and at 71st Avenue and Irving Street in the Denver area. The planning area included the Federal Boulevard corridor in areas of Adams County. Although the goal of the […]

The San Francisco Department of Public Health conducted an HIA to look at the health impacts of a proposed 2, 800-unit new residential area on 71 acres in the southeastern corner of San Francisco. This HIA was the first pilot application of San Francisco’s Health Development Measurement Tool (HDMT) to a land use development plan. […]

The Public Health Law Center will conduct an HIA to examine the ways in which decisions about school location and building design can affect health to inform revisions to the Minnesota Department of Education’s school construction and siting guidelines. School design features important to health could include improvements to bike and pedestrian access that increase […]

In 2013, Davidson Design for Life (DD4L) led a health impact assessment (HIA) in partnership with the Davidson Parks and Recreation Department, Kostelec Planning, and LandDesign to examine how parks, recreation, and public spaces can impact the seven dimensions of wellness (physical, emotional, environmental, occupational, intellectual, social, and spiritual). The HIA found that parks serve […]

Between 2018 and 2020, a team of Merced health providers, educators, researchers, and community advocates conducted an HIA to understand the impact of workforce shortages related to mild-to-moderate behavioral health (MMBH) concerns and to present ways to decrease the shortages. Merced has still not fully recovered from the housing crisis and recession of the early […]

Human Impact Partners, Advancement Project, and National People’s Action conducted a health impact assessment (HIA) of Congress’ federal 2011 proposed Rental Assistance Demonstration (RAD) project to re-organize public housing funding and management structures. Using mixed research methods, the HIA assessed the impacts of RAD on: management, evictions, and resident organizing; housing affordability, stability, and quality; […]

The Pediatric Injury Prevention Education and Research Program at the Colorado School of Public Health, in collaboration with Children’s Hospital Colorado and the Kempe Center for the Prevention and Treatment of Child Abuse and Neglect, conducted an HIA to inform Colorado Department of Human Services consideration of new policies on how marijuana use should be […]

This HIA addressed the health implications of the Clark County Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan. Some of the pathways and health issues explored included physical activity and food access, with special consideration to the particular health challenges that face vulnerable populations, such as low-income families. Outcome Clark County Public Health received Active Living Research’s 2012 […]

In partnership with New Jersey Future and the city of Hoboken, Rutgers University’s Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy completed an HIA examining the potential health effects of implementing green infrastructure-based stormwater management strategies to address chronic flooding and combined sewer system (CSS) backups and overflows in Hoboken. Over the past decade, […]

The Kansas Health Institute conducted an HIA of potential health effects of legalizing medical marijuana in the state. The HIA examined five factors that could affect health: access to and consumption of marijuana, crime, driving under the influence of marijuana and related traffic accidents, and accidental ingestion, with an emphasis on disproportionate effects to vulnerable […]

Human Impact Partners conducted an HIA on the health implications of three different approaches to disciplining students in California schools: zero tolerance, positive behavioral interventions and supports (PBIS), and restorative justice. It is hypothesized that zero tolerance policies (in which students are suspended or expelled for offenses) may not make schools safer and may actually […]

Millennium Bulk Terminals is proposing to construct and operate a coal export terminal on a 190-acre site along the Columbia River in Cowlitz County, Washington. The terminal would receive rail shipments of coal from the Powder River and the Uinta basins, which would then be transported by ship on the Columbia River and Pacific Ocean […]

This health impact assessment (HIA) aims to identify human health impacts associated with the proposed ExxonMobil development of the Thomson Sand reservoir. The project site is located approximately 60 miles east of Deadhorse on the Beaufort Sea coast, 60 miles west of Kaktovik, and just west of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Alaska. The U.S. […]

Made in Brownsville, a nonprofit based in Brooklyn, New York, conducted a rapid HIA to evaluate the health impacts of three proposed projects in the Brownsville neighborhood: a community culinary center, incubation lab, and entrepreneurship lab. The HIA explored potential effects that could result from changes to social cohesion, access to goods and services, and […]

The current Hawai‘i County Agriculture Development Plan (the Agriculture Plan) was commissioned by the Hawai‘i County Department of Research and Development in 2008 and approved by the Hawai‘i County Council in 2010. The purpose of the Agriculture Plan is to serve as a guide for county government, local advocacy groups, and local businesses to revitalize […]

In 2017, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors requested that the county Department of Public Health (DPH) assess the potential health equity implications of allowing licensed cannabis dispensaries to operate in unincorporated areas. DPH conducted an HIA to examine the potential health impacts of policy and regulatory decisions related to cannabis business locations and […]

The Mississippi State Department of Health, in partnership with stakeholders from the city of Natchez and Adams County, conducted an HIA to inform decisions about economic development, historic preservation, and revitalization. The HIA examined the Adams County Civil Rights Project (ACCRP)—one of several initiatives to increase the profile of African American heritage in Natchez and […]

Indiana University Department of Public Health, in partnership with the Marion County Health Department, the Indianapolis Parks and Recreation Department, Binford Redevelopment and Growth, Crestview Elementary, and Skiles Test Elementary, conducted an HIA to inform the decision to seek infrastructure funds for implementing a Safe Routes to School program in the Binford community of Indianapolis, […]

Common Ground Health selected the Rochester (New York) Bike Share program for an HIA because it experienced rapid expansion during its first year (25 planned stations and 250 bikes became 46 stations and 340 bikes in Phase 1). The study examined the program’s effects on residents’ physical activity, social cohesion, economic well-being, and access to […]

New Mexico Voices for Children completed an HIA of a proposed tax on food in the state. In 2004, the New Mexico Legislature exempted food from the gross receipts tax, the state’s version of the sales tax. However, state legislators, under pressure from local governments facing declining revenue, are considering allowing localities to reinstate a […]

In partnership with the Liberty Community Health Action Team and the city of Liberty, the Clay County Public Health Center used a rapid HIA to determine the health outcomes related to having sidewalks on one versus two sides of the street and of grid versus cul-de-sac street designs. The HIA team conducted a communitywide survey […]

The Arkansas Community Institute, Central Arkansas ReEntry Coalition, and local partners conducted an HIA of H.B. 1166, which would create a “warranty of habitability”—a set of basic statewide quality standards in public and private rental housing. The project focused on the bill’s potential impacts on low-income renters living south of Interstate 630 in Little Rock, […]

This Health Impact Assessment (HIA) is studying a pending policy of the Cincinnati Public Schools (CPS) on grade retention. Grade retention is the practice used by many schools, public and private, where an underachieving student is not allowed to advance to the next grade and instead is made to repeat the grade. This practice is […]

Catalyze Research and Consulting, LLC, along with the Phoenix Revitalization Corporation and with support from the Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) Phoenix, conducted a health impact assessment (HIA) of the proposed plan for redevelopment of the Coffelt-Lamoreaux Public Housing Project (Coffelt) in Phoenix, Arizona. Coffelt is the oldest operational public housing project in Maricopa County. […]

This Rapid Health Impact Assessment (RHIA) evaluated the potential health impacts on renters of Boston’s proposed Just Cause for Eviction Ordinance, which would require landlords to have a “just cause,” including any violation of the lease terms, before evicting tenants. A group of students in the Healthy Cities course in the Department of Urban Studies […]

The Prevention Research Center in St. Louis, in partnership with the Tennessee Obesity Taskforce, conducted a rapid HIA of Tennessee Senate Bill 1176, the Tennessee Food Desert Relief Act which was introduced during the 2012 legislative session. The bill would authorize the use of revenue bonds and loans to develop property into food desert relief […]

This HIA analyzed the potential health effects of implementing an Urban Agriculture overlay district, which would introduce intense farm uses such as livestock, community gardens, hoop houses, market gardens, and community gardens, in Cleveland. The HIA found that many of the proposed uses that this zoning district allows can benefit health, including access to fresh […]

Davidson Design for Life, in collaboration with a Regional Advisory Commission, conducted an HIA of North Carolina State Senate Bill 731, a bill that would amend zoning legislation to make certain building design standards not applicable to low-density, single family residences. Low-density is defined as five units per acre or less. These building design elements […]

In 2018, the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health’s Center for Health Impact Evaluation conducted an HIA using the Integrated Transportation and Health Model to quantify the health impacts of the City of Los Angeles Mobility Plan 2035—an updated transportation element of the city’s general plan—applying a health lens to the various policy, programmatic, […]

This HIA, conducted by the Alameda County Public Health Department (ACPHD), informed the development of the San Francisco Bay Area’s Regional Transportation Plan (RTP), which will serve as a guide to transportation-related investments over the next 25 years. The assessment examined the equity impacts–or how the new Plan might affect different populations in different ways–of […]

The 2010 Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act directed the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to align nutrition standards for all foods and beverages sold in schools with the federal dietary guidelines. Healthy diets are linked to a number of children’s health outcomes, including maintaining a recommended weight, decreased risk of tooth decay and other chronic diseases, […]

Texas Southern University conducted an HIA to examine the health impacts of possible development patterns that could occur in the neighborhood near a planned station on a 30-mile, five-corridor light rail expansion. Transit-oriented development generally includes high-density housing and a mix of shopping choices near transit stops in order to encourage use of public transportation. […]

This project explored how a coordinated regional transit system might impact health disparities in the Central Oregon counties of Deschutes, Jefferson, and Crook.  The HIA focused on impacts to health through opportunities for physical activity and access to healthy foods, health care services, and employment, as well as safety. Outcome Commute Options presented at a […]

The HIA addressed the health implications of a housing assistance and homelessness prevention program called the Massachusetts Rental Voucher Program (MVRP), as well as proposed changes to the program for FY2006. The HIA: 1) looked specifically at program components like time limits, work requirements, eligibility determination and required tenant rent contributions; and 2) studied the […]

EnviroHealth Consulting conducted a health impact assessment (HIA) of the City Of Denver’s Community Planning and Development Department local area plan for the proposed Central Park Boulevard commuter rail station. The HIA study area is a one and a half mile radius around the station, which includes the residential areas of Northeast Park Hill, North […]

In June of 2011, the City of Independence passed a complete streets policy. The first part of implementing the complete streets policy included the addition of bike lanes. The HIA addressed the health impacts of placement of bike lanes and made recommendations on how to improve physical activity, healthy food access, and safety. The HIA […]

The Kitsap Public Health District is conducting an HIA of the Kitsap County Transportation Improvement Program, which proposes to widen the shoulder on each side of Banner Road, a major artery in South Kitsap, Washington, to improve active transportation infrastructure along the roadway. The HIA will inform the county’s funding priorities for the program and […]

Human Impact Partners and the University of California, Berkeley schools of Public Health and City and Regional Planning, in partnership with TransForm and other Alameda County, California, community organizations, conducted an HIA of the East Bay Bus Rapid Transit Project connecting three cities in the county. The HIA examined the potential health implications of the […]

The Mid-City Community Advocacy Network (MCC) conducted an HIA to inform proposals by the San Diego County Board of Supervisors and the San Diego City Council to try to improve the outcomes of juveniles in the justice system by adopting “restorative justice.” This means creating opportunities for victims and offenders to discuss the crime and […]

The Spokane University District Pedestrian/Bicycle Bridge Health Impact Assessment (HIA) was developed to help inform decision makers about potential health impacts that development of a pedestrian bridge in the University District will have on the current and projected population who will live, work, and recreate within a quarter-mile radius of the bridge. The bridge project […]

The Harvard Center for Population and Development Studies, together with the Metropolitan Area Planning Council, conducted an HIA to inform state decisions on funding for the Small Business Technical Assistance (SBTA) Program, an initiative that incubates and supports small businesses in underserved Massachusetts communities. The HIA explored links between the income-generating effects of supporting small […]

The Washington County Departments of Public Works and Public Health and Environment, in collaboration with the Gateway Corridor Commission, conducted an HIA to examine the potential health impacts of possible land-use changes around the Gold Line Bus Rapid Transit corridor and to inform comprehensive planning of station areas in five cities—Saint Paul, Maplewood, Oakdale, Landfall, […]

Human Impact Partners conducted an HIA of the federal Healthy Families Act of 2009 and a companion rapid assessment of existing health data relevant to New Jersey. As of 2011, almost 40% of the state’s private sector workers—over 1.2 million New Jersey residents—were not entitled to any paid sick days. At the time of the […]

The Kane County, Illinois, Department of Development and Community Services, in partnership with the village of Carpentersville and the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning, are conducting an HIA of the intersection of Washington and Main streets and the nearby Fox River Trail crossing in Carpentersville. The village’s Old Town Plan was adopted in 2012 and […]

This HIA was conducted to inform the state’s decision on whether to revise the Kansas Liquor Control Act to allow convenience and grocery stores to hold retail liquor licenses. The law, which has been in place for more than 60 years, currently allows only liquor stores to sell spirits, wine, and beer with higher alcohol […]

This HIA, conducted by the University of Rochester, supplemented the development of the city of Rochester’s Local Waterfront Revitalization Program (LWRP) with health-related community engagement, data collection, and analysis. The LWRP will help inform city, private, state, and federal decisions affecting area waterways and shorelines into the next decade and will guide land and water […]

At the request of City of Cincinnati employees, the Cincinnati Health Department (CHD) Health Impact Assessment (HIA) Committee studied the health impacts experienced by workers impacted directly and indirectly from the layoff or the bumping process. When a senior union member’s position is eliminated, s/he can ‘bump’ a junior employee out of his or position. […]

The Fairfax County Health Department conducted a health impact assessment (HIA) to examine the potential health effects of developing a new transit center along the Richmond Highway Corridor, which connects major commercial, residential, and recreational areas in Northern Virginia. The HIA aimed to inform the site selection process for the new transit center and offered […]

In 2014, Winona County Community Services produced a countywide Active Living Plan to provide direction on policies and practices that create active communities through nonmotorized transportation (biking and walking) and access to community recreation facilities. Winona County, along with the Minnesota Department of Health, conducted a health impact assessment to enhance the Active Living Plan […]

In 2010, the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) received funds from the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials (ASTHO) to support and conduct Health Impact Assessments (HIAs). This assistance provided an opportunity to collaborate with Douglas County Public Health to evaluate the County’s draft Comprehensive Plan from a public health perspective. Douglas County Public […]

In 2012, construction crews broke ground on Middle Tennessee’s first transit-oriented development. The developer was interested in possibly including a school as part of the Transit-Oriented Development Master Plan. The Metropolitan Planning Organization was approached by the master site planner to provide information that would help the developer understand the economic and public health benefits […]

The Kansas Health Institute and the University of Kansas School of Medicine – Wichita conducted a health impact assessment (HIA) to inform a Wichita City Council vote on proposed changes to the city’s transit system. The HIA found that the health of people who do not have a reliable car or social network would be […]

The Arizona Department of Health Services (AZDHS), in partnership with the Local Iniative Support Corporation (LISC), the Housing Authority of Maricopa County, and the Maricopa County Department of Health, conducted an HIA on the redevelopment of Madison Heights, a public housing unit near Phoenix, Arizona. The HIA examined the potential health effect of the development […]

The Weld County Department of Public Health & Environment conducted a rapid health impact assessment of the East Greeley and Weld County Study Area to establish a baseline community health profile and gather input from community stakeholders to inform planning decisions around a federal grant to promote healthy eating and physical activity. The HIA found […]

The University of Nevada, Las Vegas completed an HIA to inform decisions by the Nevada State Legislature on proposed modifications to the availability of full-day kindergarten and on allocating state funding to support full-day kindergarten in high-risk schools. The HIA highlighted connections between full-day kindergarten and academic success. In particular, the study found that black, […]

Indiana University Fairbanks School of Public Health, along with the Marion County Public Health Department and Indiana Minority Health Coalition, conducted a health impact assessment (HIA) of a potential full-service grocery store development in the neighborhood locally known as the Meadows, a federally-designated food desert on the northeast side of Indianapolis, Indiana. Access to fresh […]

The Center for Quality Growth and Regional Development at the Georgia Institute of Technology, along with the Georgia Department of Public Health, conducted a health impact assessment (HIA) of the redevelopment of McIntosh Homes, a public housing project in Albany, Georgia. The redevelopment plan for McIntosh Homes was developed by the Albany Housing Authority (AHA) […]

Between 2011 and 2014, the Oregon Health Authority Public Health Division conducted three health impact assessments (HIAs) on elements of Portland Metro’s Climate Smart Communities planning project. The Portland metro regional government requested the HIAs to ensure that decision-makers had access to public health evidence and best practices as they shaped and approved a greenhouse […]

The San Francisco Department of Public Health (SFDPH) conducted an HIA to address a proposed policy in San Francisco that would charge a fee for driving in congested areas during AM/PM rush hours and use the revenue to support transportation infrastructure and services. The HIA analyzed potential health effects of two scenarios: city plans for […]

Bicycle Haywood NC, a local bicycle advocacy group, and the Haywood County Recreation and Parks Department conducted an HIA to determine the impacts of the Haywood County Comprehensive Bike Plan. The HIA focused on key health outcomes that are strongly linked to bicycle activity: leading causes of death from heart, cancer and ischemic heart issues; […]

During the 2014 legislative cycle, Utah legislators intended to revisit alcohol regulations that many stakeholders felt were outdated. These included a limit on the number of alcohol retail outlet licenses issued according to population quotas. Some stakeholders were concerned that lowering the population quotas required for each license would lead to an increase in the […]

This HIA was completed by the Oregon Public Health Institute to inform the City of Portland Bureau of Planning and Sustainability’s area plan for a neighborhood or Portland.  The HIA addressed how the plan would affect opportunities for physical activity, access to healthful foods, traffic safety, air quality, and community cohesion. – This Health Impact […]

This HIA was conducted in parallel to development of the Gary/New Duluth Small Area Plan. The City of Duluth Long-Range Planning developed the small area plan, which included objectives to improve blighted properties, develop vacant land, clean contaminated land, connect sidewalks and add bike lanes, promote businesses and job growth, increase green space and connect […]

The Arizona Department of Health Services and the Sierra Vista Metropolitan Planning Organization (SVMPO) are conducting an HIA of several SVMPO policies and projects that support walking and biking. The HIA will focus on how increased physical activity can improve health and explore the connections between the built environment and individual and community health. Its […]

The Health Impact Assessment (HIA) Project, a joint endeavor of the Partnership for Prevention and the UCLA School of Public Health, conducted this HIA on a state legislative proposal to expand funding for after-school programs. The HIA found several potential health benefits that could occur through improving educational outcomes; through reductions in violence and injury […]

Human Impact Partners, in partnership with Building Healthy Communities Merced, the Merced Organizing Project, and the California Endowment, conducted an HIA of “restorative justice school discipline” pilots in Merced, California. Restorative justice policies are dialogue-based decision-making processes that consider the needs of all those involved in a disciplinary incident: victims, offenders, and school staff. In […]

Human Impact Partners conducted an HIA of California Proposition 47, The Safe Neighborhoods and Schools Act, which appeared on the November 2014 state ballot. Proposition 47 would reclassify six nonserious, nonviolent offenses as misdemeanors; allow people incarcerated for those crimes to apply for lower sentences, release, and expungement; and redirect savings from a reduction in […]

In August 2011, the Town of Aberdeen in Moore County released the proposed Aberdeen Pedestrian Transportation Plan (APTP). The goals of the APTP are to create more walkable spaces, increase pedestrian connectivity, calm traffic patterns, and increase pedestrian safety (APTP, 2011). During the fall semester of 2011, the team collaborated with Melissa Watford of FirstHealth […]

Federal spending on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) was a central dispute during the 112th and 113th Congressional deliberations over the Farm Bill reauthorization. The Senate and House introduced several bills that sought to reduce SNAP spending by changing the procedures that states use to determine eligibility and the benefit amount that some participating […]

As part of Philadelphia’s zoning and planning process, the City Department of Public Health and Planning Commission conducted an HIA to better understand the health implications of implementing three elements of the Lower South District Plan. The Lower South District Plan is one of 18 District Plans that make up the Comprehensive Plan, Philadelphia 2035. […]

In 2010, the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) received a grant from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to conduct a Health Impact Assessment (HIA) on the Minnesota Environmental Assessment Worksheet (EAW). MDH conducted a desktop HIA on the Divine Mercy Development mixed-use EAW to inform general recommendations of incorporating health and climate […]

The purpose of this rapid Health Impact Assessment (HIA) was to discuss the negative and positive health impacts of a biosolids storage facility being proposed in the Town of Greenville, and to identify ways to decrease any adverse health impacts of the proposed biosolids storage facility. The Greenville community expressed concern about the health risks […]

ISAIAH, TakeAction Minnesota and PolicyLink worked together in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area to conduct an HIA of proposed land-use changes related to a new light rail transit line that will connect the Twin Cities. The Central Corridor Light Rail Transit line, which runs through low-income and immigrant communities in St. Paul, could have wide-reaching, positive […]

The Douglas County Health Department and its partners conducted a health impact assessment (HIA) of the Crossroads Redevelopment Area, a 239-acre shopping mall complex located at one of the busiest intersections in Omaha. The mall was purchased by a developer in 2010, with plans to convert it to a mixed-used area. Currently, the mall has […]

Human Impact Partners, in collaboration with the Los Angeles Coalition Against Wage Theft, conducted an HIA of the proposed wage theft ordinance in Los Angeles. In 2014, the coalition proposed provisions for the ordinance that were accepted by the City Council and then reviewed by the Los Angeles city attorney. The proposed ordinance includes provisions […]

The Health Impact Project, in partnership with the Oregon Public Health Institute and the Metropolitan Area Planning Council, conducted an HIA to inform an update by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) of its designated housing rule, which allows housing authorities to allocate certain public housing properties, or a portion of them, […]

The Illinois Public Health Institute (IPHI) and the Chicago Department of Public Health (CDPH) conducted an HIA of a proposed greenway trail along a 2-mile corridor in Chicago’s Englewood neighborhood. It considered how the trail would affect community safety, access to and use of green space and parks, traffic-related air pollution, brownfields and vacant lots, […]

Goodhue County Health and Human Services, in partnership with the Goodhue County Land Use Management Department, will conduct an HIA to inform decisions around the county’s zoning districts. The assessment will provide information on the potential health benefits resulting from the creation of bike and walking trails in recreational areas, as well as the possible […]

The University of California, Los Angeles School of Public Health, in collaboration with the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, conducted an HIA to assess the potential health effects of a proposed subway and other mass-transit alternatives through Los Angeles’ high-density, highly congested Wilshire Corridor, running from mid-town Los Angeles to the city of […]

The purpose of the assessment was to evaluate the potential effects of a worksite wellness tax credit on three main areas of concern for Kentucky: (1) nutrition, physical activity and obesity levels of children whose parents receive Worksite Wellness services, (2) jobs and (3) social cohesion. The purpose of conducting the HIA was to consider […]

Working with colleagues from the Harvard School of Public Health and the Boston University School of Public Health, the Metropolitan Area Planning Council (MAPC) conducted a health impact assessment (HIA) of the two proposals of fare increases and service cuts aimed at closing the Boston T’s projected deficit of $161 million this year. Under Scenario […]

Shelter-in-place policies aim to support residents’ ability to remain in their homes after an earthquake or other major disaster. The San Francisco Department of Public Health conducted an HIA to analyze the city and county’s capacity to support these policies if such an event occurred, and highlighted areas that warrant further attention to better protect […]

Mendocino County is classified as a moratorium county under the Alcoholic Beverage Control Business and Professional Code 23817.5: the ratio of Type 20 off-sale beer and wine licenses exceeds one for every 2,500 inhabitants. Mendocino has 48 outlets per 10,000 residents compared to 21 outlets per 10,000 residents in California state-wide. This HIA, conducted by […]

The Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa conducted an HIA to analyze and explain the importance of wild rice, or manoomin, to the health of the Ojibwe people in advance of a proposed revision to loosen water quality standards for wild rice cultivation in Minnesota. Hand-harvested manoomin is a staple for the Ojibwe […]

The Health Impact Project, a collaboration of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and The Pew Charitable Trusts, conducted a rapid HIA to inform the U.S. Department of Education’s proposed Title I regulations Section 200.21(c) regarding the content, procedures, and implementation of school-level needs assessments. Under the Every Student Succeeds Act, local educational agencies (LEAs) are […]

The Arizona Department of Health Services (ADHS), in partnership with Maricopa County Department of Public Health (MCDPH) formed a multidisciplinary team to work on the Health Impact Assessment (HIA) project funded by Association of State and Territorial Health Officials (ASTHO). The HIA team consisted of eight leaders representing ADHS, MCDPH, Arizona Department of Transportation, Arizona […]

The City of Fitchburg, along with the Montachusett Opportunity Council, the Montachusett Regional Planning Council, the Massachusetts Department of Public Health, and Fun ‘n FITchburg, conducted a health impact assessment (HIA) that examined the City of Fitchburg’s proposals for the redevelopment of vacant lots around the city. The city considered several strategies for the lots, […]

Community Health Councils Inc. conducted an HIA of a proposal to offer permits for sidewalk vending in Los Angeles, focusing on how legalizing vendors could change the nutritional behaviors of students in South Los Angeles. Sidewalk vending is prohibited citywide, but the City Council is considering creation of a vendor permit application process. The HIA […]

The Massachusetts Department of Public Health (MDPH) conducted an HIA to evaluate how alternative designs of the Route 28/McGrath Highway corridor may affect the health of residents. The HIA focused on health impacts related to new park space, multimodal access to the region, improvements in air quality, and enhanced connectivity between neighborhoods. The HIA examined […]

This rapid health impact assessment (HIA) was integrated into the planning process for the Robbinsville (NC) Pedestrian and Greenway Plans. The HIA used research and literature reviews, and a stakeholder workshop to determine how the plans could impact physical health by promoting active transportation and mental health by fostering social connections. The HIA made several […]

The Nashua Regional Planning Commission conducted an HIA on a new comprehensive cluster residential regulation in the Town of Milford, New Hampshire. The regulation would remove zoning barriers to higher-density housing developments for projects that offer inclusionary and affordable housing; conservation and open space; mobility; and services. The HIA focused on strategies that can be […]

In March 2012, project partners received funding from the Michigan Department of Community Health to conduct a Health Impact Assessment (HIA) of key non-motorized transportation elements of the City of East Lansing’s draft Climate Sustainability Plan and Non-Motorized Transportation Plan along the Burcham-Hagadorn intersecting corridors. The funding for this HIA comes from a grant awarded […]

The New Jersey Health Impact Collaborative recently completed an HIA in conjunction with preparation of a plan to increase use and access of a “rails-to-trails” greenway located in Central New Jersey. The recently opened 3.5 mile paved Middlesex Greenway runs through the towns of Edison, Metuchen, and Woodbridge in central New Jersey. The three towns, […]

An HIA to assess potential health outcomes associated with introducing bus rapid transit to the 47th Street Trolley Station near Interstate 805 in San Diego. The assessment focused on several health determinants including transportation, housing, access to goods and services, and environmental quality. – This Health Impact Assessment Report first appeared in The Cross-Sector Toolkit […]

The redesign study of Sixth Avenue East in 2010 arose out of community concerns about the safety of the roadway and its perceived negative effects on the neighborhood. – This Health Impact Assessment Report first appeared in The Cross-Sector Toolkit for Health. The Cross-Sector Toolkit for Health was originally developed by the Health Impact Project, […]

The Southern New Hampshire Planning Commission (SNHPC) conducted a health impact assessment (HIA) that examined the potential health impacts of the Second Street Corridor Project in Manchester, New Hampshire. The Second Street Corridor Access and Mixed Use Overlay Zoning Project is funded by a grant provided to the City of Manchester through the New Hampshire […]

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, along with the Massachusetts Departments of Public Health and Environmental Protection, is conducting a health impact assessment to help the City of Springfield, Massachusetts compare options for renovation and improvement at the Gerena Elementary School. – This Health Impact Assessment Report first appeared in The Cross-Sector Toolkit for Health. The […]

The Lands Council, City of Spokane, and Spokane Regional Health District conducted a rapid HIA of the pedestrian portion of the multi-modal transportation strategy included in the downtown plan update for Spokane, Washington. The HIA focused on the potential health effects of air quality, noise, safety, mental health, parks and natural space, private goods and […]

Health Resources in Action, in partnership with the Massachusetts Department of Public Health and the Metropolitan Area Planning Commission, will conduct a health impact assessment, or HIA, to inform the promulgation of regulations by the Massachusetts Department of Housing and Community Development that will guide the release of funding for community development corporations under the […]

The Douglas County Health Department conducted a health impact assessment (HIA) of 40 vacant lots along a 3-mile stretch of Cole Creek in Omaha, Nebraska. The vacant lots were created as part of an erosion control and flood-buyout program. The HIA informed the City of Omaha Parks, Recreation, and Public Property Department how this vacant […]

This HIA, a collaboration between the Healthy Places program at Columbus Public Health and the Department of Development’s Planning Division, looked at six key recommendations from a proposed area plan for northeast Columbus. It explored the impacts these recommendations might have on physical activity, air pollution, mental health, social capital (the relationships between people living […]

At the request of the city of Baltimore and the University of Maryland, the Baltimore City Health Department conducted a rapid HIA to identify potential health equity issues associated with redevelopment of the Lexington Market area of the Downtown-Westside neighborhood. The redevelopment would feature mixed-income, mixed-use development and implement the Complete Streets approach to roadway […]

In 2005, 48 jurisdictions in central Michigan adopted a regional growth plan that encouraged cooperation, such as joint planning and shared services, including policing, fire protection, and tax assessments, to maximize revenue and ensure the sustainability of public services. As part of these efforts, the Tri-County Regional Planning Commission developed a regional urban and rural […]

The Burlington District Office of the Vermont Department of Health, in collaboration with the Chittenden County Regional Planning Commission, the Town of Milton, and other stakeholders, conducted an HIA of the reconfiguration of a 3-mile corridor of U.S. Route 7 in Milton. Eight strategies are proposed for the corridor; the HIA focused on the four […]

The city of Ramsey, Minnesota, in collaboration with Design for Health and Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota, conducted an HIA on the potential health effects of the city’s comprehensive plan update to identify what progress has been made on key health indicators and opportunities for further improvement. The HIA found that Ramsey provides […]

The Louisville Metro Department of Public Health and Wellness conducted an HIA to analyze the potential health effects of the Kentucky Pregnant Workers’ Act. The bill proposed to ensure reasonable workplace accommodations for women during pregnancy, such as reducing heavy lifting, bending, or standing and exposure to chemicals, heavy metals, and loud noises; providing consistent […]

In 2010, the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) received a grant from the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials (ASTHO) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to support and conduct Health Impact Assessments (HIAs). As part of the grant requirements and in collaboration with the City of St. Louis Park (SLP), […]

The Columbia/Boone County Department of Public Health and Human Services partnered with the PedNet Coalition and Central Missouri Community Action in late 2011 to perform an HIA on the health effects of expanding and improving bus service in Columbia. The HIA focused on health indicators most likely to be affected by expansion of public transit, […]

This health impact assessment examined the transit extension connecting South Phoenix, a disadvantaged neighborhood, to the existing light-rail line of the city. Valley Metro, a public transportation provider in the Phoenix area, is the key decision-maker and has supported previous HIA work in Arizona. The HIA addressed improved access to health care services for the […]

In 2016, a group of Massachusetts planners, public health professionals, and members of the American Planning Association partnered with Groundwork Lawrence on a health impact assessment (HIA) framework to measure the economic, social, and environmental impacts of planting street trees in the Arlington and South Common neighborhoods in Lawrence, Massachusetts, a city with a nearly […]

The Indiana University School of Public Health, in partnership with the Marion County Public Health Department and the Indianapolis Parks and Recreation Department, conducted an HIA of the Indy Parks Comprehensive Plan. The plan is conducted every five years to categorize current parks and greenways, as well as establish future needs of each township served […]

This HIA addressed a proposal to demolish an older apartment building with over 360 rent-controlled units, and replace them with 1,400 market-rate condominiums. The analysis concluded that displacing current residents could have serious adverse health effects, such as increasing food insecurity and hunger, mental health problems, and the risk of homelessness (which has implications for […]

Detroit Community-Academic Urban Research Center conducted a health impact assessment to inform the Detroit Future City’s Strategic Framework, a plan to guide land use planning for the city. The HIA addressed the potential impact on high-vacancy neighborhoods of the framework’s proposals for public lighting and blight removal. The report presented evidence-based recommendations to minimize risks […]

This HIA considered three alternative scenarios for proposed changes to a farmer’s market in Trenton, New Jersey. The scenarios under review by the market’s executive board included: 1) minor cosmetic changes, such as better lighting and new wiring; 2) a major remodel aimed at more effectively integrating the market into the surrounding community; and 3) […]

The Crook County Public Health Department conducted an HIA of current pedestrian and bicycling infrastructure in Prineville, Oregon to inform an updated community plan. The HIA focused on improving overall safety and accessibility of sidewalks, walking paths, and bicycle use, and identifying areas where specific actions can be taken to address pedestrian safety. The HIA […]

The Florida Department of Health in Hillsborough County and the Hillsborough Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) conducted a health impact assessment of the George Road Complete Streets Implementation Plan, which aimed to provide a safe bicycle and pedestrian connection between the Town ‘N’ Country Greenway and the Courtney Campbell Trail. The study found that the plan […]

California Rural Legal Assistance Inc. conducted an HIA to examine the health impacts on indigenous Mexican residents of Kern County, California, of access to a trained interpreter during interactions with law enforcement. This HIA found that language barriers create significant challenges for indigenous Mexican residents of Kern County, California, particularly reducing residents’ likelihood of reporting […]

Graduate students at Georgia Tech worked with Healthy Savannah to prepare a rapid HIA on the potential health and social impacts of the proposed Tide to Town trail, a 30-mile walking trail in Savannah. The HIA focused on three themes: residential displacement from flooding; connectivity and physical activity; and the relationship between housing, jobs, and […]