Health

Counties increasingly handle direct mental health services, acting as the safety net for vulnerable residents and operating crisis lines, hospitals and detention centers. NACo’s Commission on Mental Health and Wellbeing unites county leaders to address the mental health crisis through four key policy priorities.

County Health Rankings & Roadmaps provide local-level data that shows how people from one county to another rank on a  range of factors that determine health--unemployment, education, community safety, diet and exercise, and other areas to ensure that every community is a healthy place to live, learn, work and play.

The Familiar Faces Initiative aims to reduce incarceration and hospitalization rates for individuals frequently cycling through jails, shelters, and emergency services. The program encourages communities to share data and integrate care between health and justice systems for earlier intervention, improving outcomes for these "familiar faces."

NACo’s Healthy Counties Initiative creates and sustains healthy counties by supporting collaboration and sharing evidence-informed approaches to pressing health issues.

NACo's Opioid Solutions Center empowers local leaders to invest resources in effective treatment, recovery, prevention and harm reduction practices that save lives and address the underlying causes of substance use disorder.