Boston, MA, November 7, 2022 — The National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO), along with two other national public health associations, received the 2022 Fries Prize for contributions that strengthened local public health and saved and protected the lives of millions of Americans during the COVID-19 pandemic – the most significant threat to health in more than a century. The award, presented to individuals or organizations doing the most to improve public health, was announced during the American Public Health Association (APHA) Annual Meeting in Boston on November 7, 2022. NACCHO is the voice of the country’s nearly 3,000 local health departments.
NACCHO Board of Directors’ President Margaret (Margy) Jahn, MS, MPH, Director for the Freehold Area Health Department, accepted the award on behalf of NACCHO. She said: “This is an honor that recognizes the dedication and commitment my and other local health departments around the country have exhibited during the COVID-19 pandemic. During the height of the health crisis, local health departments demonstrated unparalleled leadership – developing and implementing science-based prevention and mitigation measures; partnering with health systems, hospitals, community- and faith-based organizations, and other sectors; offering testing and vaccines; using data to track the virus and identify gaps in care; and providing research-based health information to our communities and the people we serve. NACCHO is humbled and honored to receive this year’s Fries award on behalf of every local public health department in the nation.”
“I greatly appreciate the recognition of the extraordinary work performed by NACCHO members – the nation’s nearly 3,000 local health departments and their staffs who have tirelessly worked the front lines in response to the unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic. The honor is well-deserved, and we are proud to accept the award on behalf of our hardworking local public health leaders and our NACCHO staff who gave so much during this global health crisis,” said NACCHO Chief Executive Officer Lori Tremmel Freeman, MBA. “It has been our privilege to work with and share this honor with our organizational partners at the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials and the Big Cities Health Coalition.”
The monetary award for the Fries Prize for Improving Health is $60,000, which will be distributed among the three organizations. This is the first time in its 30-year history that three organizations will be recognized simultaneously.
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About NACCHO
The National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO) represents the nation’s nearly 3,000 local governmental health departments. These city, county, metropolitan, district, and tribal departments work every day to protect and promote health and well-being for all people in their communities. For more information about NACCHO, please visit www.naccho.org.
About The James F. and Sarah T. Fries Foundation
The James F. and Sarah T. Fries Foundation is a nonprofit corporation incorporated in 1991. The mission of the foundation is to identify and honor individuals, organizations or institutions, which have made great contributions to the health of the public. The foundation seeks to reward accomplishment rather than promise, practicality rather than theory.