The Year 2000 National Health Objectives

Abstract

HE Year zooo Health Objectives were officially released r by the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services on September 6, I990. The plan document is entitled Healthy People 2000, National Health Promotion and S7III7 Disease Prevention Objectives (i). It identifies 298 specific health objectives in zz priority areas. The plan is organized into five main sections: Health Promotion Objectives (e.g., Physical Activity and Fitness), Health Protection Objectives (e.g., Environmental Health), Preventive Services Objectives (e.g., Clinical Preventive Services), Surveillance and Data Systems Objectives, and AgeRelated Objectives (e.g., Adolescents and Young Adults). The Secretary of Health and Human Services, Louis W. Sullivan, MD, has stated that the success of the plan can be measured "by increasing life expectancy, reducing health status disparities among Americans, and improving access to care, health education, and preventive services for all Americans" (z). The Year zooo Health Objectives represent the second installment of a continuing Federal initiative to adopt "management by objectives" techniques for health status improvement in the nation. The first phase of this process began with the publication of Healthy People, The Surgeon General's Report on Health Promotion and Disease Prevention in 1979, and Promoting Health, Preventing Disease, Objectives for the Nation in I980 8(34). This later document contained specific objectives for the year 9199o. The Year zooo Objectives were developed with considerable input from a wide range of national, state, and local health organizations (5). In a complementary initiative, the Association of State & Territorial Health Officials (ASTHO) has been working to structure a practical, working relationship between national health objectives and public