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No Smoking Complaint Form Download this form to file a complaint. Find out more about the Smokefree Public Place and Workplace Law.

updated September 17, 2008

Welcome to the Rhode Island Department of Health Website

Our Mission
is to prevent disease and to protect and promote the health and safety of the people of Rhode Island.

I Want To...	Online Services
Get a copy of a birth, death or marriage certificate Find the survey score of a nursing home Find out about food recalls in the Rhode Island area Request information from the Health Department File a complaint against a health professional File a no-smoking complaint	View Food Safety Inspection Reports Renew your Health Professional License Verify the license of a health professional Order educational materials online Download mailing lists and labels

Features

Hospital Conversions / Mergers Program

Quit Smoking Now! 1-800-TRY-TO-STOP 1-800-879-8678 trytostop.org

Information regarding Fire Safe Cigarettes
The Department of Health is postponing implementation of Fire Safe Cigarettes regulations indefinitely. Do not submit certifications until directed to do so via this web site. Please check this site periodically for updates regarding an implementation date. Questions may be directed to Jan Shedd, Team Lead for Health Promotion and Wellness at 402-222-5927.

Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention Program Draft State Plan
The goal is to launch and sustain a statewide coordinated effort to prevent and control heart disease and stroke. The program is committed to furthering policies and systems that: sustain individual behavior change, enhance access to effective medical care, and improve health status with a special focus on the elimination of racial and ethnic disparities in heart disease and stroke prevention. See also: Stroke Task Force Report to the General Assembly

State HEALTH Laboratories: Laboratory Services 2007
This report was developed to provide a consolidated overview of the diverse laboratory services provided by the State Health Laboratories, a division of the Rhode Island Department of Health.

Food Safety Inspections
Health Department food safety inspection reports completed since January 2007 are available online for all retail establishments including restaurants, markets and health care facilities. These reports consist of all inspection types including routine and reinspections, illness investigations and preoperational inspections. Some inspections may not contain violations.

Health and Medical Headlines

Reuters Health
Yahoo Health
CDC
NIH
WHO

Reuters Health

Maternal flu shots protect newborns: U.S. study

BOSTON (Reuters) - Flu shots given to pregnant women a month or more before delivery will prevent most cases of influenza during the first six months of their babies' lives, researchers said.

China toxic milk powder kills 3, thousands sick

BEIJING (Reuters) - China said on Wednesday a third infant had died after drinking contaminated milk and the number sick had leapt to many thousands, while an official said the health threat was concealed for at least a month.

Reports criticize Obama, McCain health plans

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama's health care plan would cost too much and create more regulation, while Republican John McCain's plan would leave 60 million Americans without health insurance and reduce coverage, experts said on Tuesday.

Yahoo Health

Medical device ads criticized on Capitol Hill (AP)

AP - Medical experts told lawmakers Wednesday that new television advertisements for medical devices pose even greater risks to patients than ads for drugs, which have been scrutinized for years.

FDA defends plastic linked with health risks (AP)

AP - With scientists at odds about the risks of a chemical found in plastic baby bottles, metal cans and other food packaging, the government on Tuesday gave consumers some tips on how to reduce their exposure to BPA even as it said the substance is safe.

Bad vaccines risk encephalitis epidemic in India (AP)

AP - India's government sent thousands of ineffective vaccines to a northern Indian state, halting a planned immunization drive against a deadly outbreak of Japanese encephalitis that has killed more than 200 children since June, officials said Wednesday.

CDC

CDC Recommends Shingles Vaccine

People age 60 and older should be vaccinated against shingles, or herpes zoster, a condition often marked by debilitating chronic pain...

New CDC Study Finds Arthritis Can be a Barrier for Adults Seeking to Manage Diabetes through Physical Activity

More than half of adults with diagnosed diabetes also have arthritis, a painful condition that can be a barrier to physical activityâ€”an important health strategy for managing diabetes...

Falls a Leading Cause of Injury-Related Emergency Department Visits for Infants Each Year, CDC Study Shows

Half of the estimated 328,500 infants 12 months of age or younger who were treated for injuries in hospital emergency departments each year from 2001 to 2004 were injured as a result of a fall, according to a study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

NIH

Roughly One Quarter of U.S. Women Affected By Pelvic Floor Disorders

Nearly 24 percent of U.S. women are affected with one or more pelvic floor disorders, report researchers funded by the National Institutes of Health. Their analysis is the first to document in a nationally representative sample the extent of pelvic floor disorders, a cluster of health problems that causes physical discomfort and limits activity.

New NIH Research Initiative to Test Treatments for Menopausal Symptoms

Women troubled by hot flashes and night sweats during the years around menopause want safe, effective treatment options. A new research initiative from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) will establish a multisite research network to conduct clinical trials of promising treatments for the most common symptoms of the menopausal transition.

NIEHS Invests $21.25 Million to Find Environmental Causes of Parkinson's Disease

The National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), announced today that it will award three new grants totaling $21.25 million over a five-year period to study how environmental factors contribute to the cause, prevention and treatment of Parkinson's disease and other related disorders.

WHO

US$ 4.2-million health response launched for Haiti

12 September 2008 -- WHO and its partners urgently need US$ 4.2 million to provide health care for the 800 000 people - including children and pregnant women - affected by successive tropical storms in Haiti.

Health response launched for the displaced in Pakistan

9 September 2008 -- Some 423 000 people in Pakistan need urgent health care after being affected by recent conflict and flooding. WHO and partners are requesting US$ 9.76 million to undertake life-saving health responses to this humanitarian crisis.

African countries to introduce new meningitis vaccine

4 September 2008 -- Health ministers from the African meningitis belt today committed themselves to introduce a highly promising candidate meningitis vaccine. The vaccine is designed to prevent periodic epidemics of the deadly disease in these countries.

Adult Influenza Immunization Program

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In the News

09/11/2008 11:45 EDT

Department of Health Adult Immunization Program Receives National Award

09/10/2008 15:45 EDT

Three New Positive West Nile Samples In Two Communities Reinforce Confirmation That Virus Is Well-Established In RI

08/28/2008 16:00 EDT

Department of Health Issues West Nile Virus Prevention Advisory

08/14/2008 16:00 EDT

Department of Health Reports Seasonal Peak Of Tick-Borne Diseases

08/14/2008 09:30 EDT