Nearly 100 elected and appointed county officials from across America will convene in Wake County this week for the National Association of Counties (NACo) Healthy Counties Forum. 

NACo’s Healthy Counties Initiative helps counties create and sustain healthy communities, support partnerships, and share effective solutions to pressing health issues. Sig Hutchinson, chair of the Wake County Board of Commissioners, serves as a vice chair of NACo’s Healthy Counties Advisory Board. 

“Wake County has been working for years to create a healthy community where everyone can thrive,” said Chair Hutchison. “We recognize that your zip code may impact your life expectancy even more than your genetic code, and that’s why we’re focused on addressing the social determinants of health, like affordable housing, transportation and access to health care.” 

Except for mobile tours, the forum will take place at the Sheraton Raleigh, 421 S Salisbury St. in downtown Raleigh. 

Click here to view the full agenda. 

To RSVP and request media credentials, please complete this form. 

This forum will focus on strategies for equitably addressing systems that impact the social determinants of health, particularly emerging from the COVID-19 pandemic. Session topics include:

• Innovations in whole-person health care coming out of COVID-19, including the county role in promoting equity in health services;
• Addressing housing and homelessness to support health and the county role in supporting employee mental and physical well-being;
• Mental health, food insecurity, the built environment and public health for older adults; and
• Guidance on new funding from opioid lawsuit settlements and the American Rescue Plan to support local efforts to combat the opioid epidemic. 

The forum will feature several local programs, including:

• The Poe Center, a nonprofit organization dedicated to positively impacting the lives of North Carolina youth through health education; 
• Healing Transitions, a nonprofit organization that offers peer-based, recovery-oriented services to homeless, uninsured and underserved individuals with alcoholism and other drug addictions; and
• Oak City Cares, a point of entry into housing services for those experiencing homelessness and housing instability in Wake County.

The National Association of Counties (NACo) strengthens America’s counties, including nearly 40,000 county elected officials and 3.6 million county employees. Founded in 1935, NACo unites county officials to advocate for county government priorities in federal policymaking; promote exemplary county policies and practices; nurture leadership skills and expand knowledge networks; optimize county and taxpayer resources and cost savings; and enrich the public’s understanding of county government. www.naco.org