Health observances are days,
weeks, or months devoted to promoting particular health concerns. This
planning guide developed by the National Health Information Center lists
national health observances, along with the sponsoring organizations and
information about supporting materials that will be available.
Health professionals, teachers, community groups,
employers, and others can use these special times to sponsor health
promotion events, stimulate awareness of health risks, or focus on disease prevention.
Individuals can take advantage of the latest health promotion or disease
prevention information available about the topic of a health observance to
improve their own health or the health of family members as well as
volunteer to support locally sponsored events.
2008 National Health Observances
- Year at a Glance [HTML]. A summary by month and date(s) of listed
national health observances.
-
Complete
Document [HTML]. Full listing by month and
date(s), including sponsoring organizations and contact information for materials.
Complete Document
[PDF - 0.6 MB]. Adobe® Acrobat® PDF version, including Year at a Glance
and monthly planning pages.
Note: Documents in PDF format require the Adobe
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documents, please
download the latest version of the Reader®. 
This publication may be reproduced without
permission. Please provide an appropriate credit line in any reproduction
of this information, whether print or electronic: “Source: 2008 National
Health Observances, National Health Information Center, Office of Disease
Prevention and Health Promotion, U.S. Department of Health and Human
Services, Washington, D.C.”
For more information about an event, please contact the sponsoring
organization directly. To submit an update or correction, please
contact the National Health Information Center.
The HTML 'Year at a Glance' and 'Complete Document' files are updated as
necessary throughout the year.
Information appearing in this document does not
represent an endorsement by the Office of Disease Prevention and Health
Promotion or the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, which do
not have any role in naming national health observances.