Press Releases

The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services is encouraging people to speak with their physician or local health department about hepatitis A and B vaccine, viral hepatitis screenings and treatment options.

QuitlineNC, North Carolina's telephone service that helps people quit smoking and other tobacco use, is offering eight weeks of nicotine patches combined with either nicotine gum or lozenges for free until the end of the month or while supplies lasts.

The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services’ State Center for Health Statistics has created an interactive map with a series of overlays showing social determinants of health indicators in North Carolina, including the economic, social and neighborhood, and housing and transportation status of residents across the state.

The important contributions of North Carolina’s strong public health system are highlighted this month by a proclamation from Governor Roy Cooper designating April as Public Health Month. Public health departments provide flu vaccines, screen for health issues, take precautions to keep disease from spreading and promote tobacco cessation efforts. 

Today the Office of Minority Health and Health Disparities in the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services released its Health Equity Report for 2018, which shows progress and areas for continued improvement for a healthier North Carolina.

Emergency department visits for opioid overdose in North Carolina have risen sharply, with preliminary data for 2017 indicating more than 5,700 visits, a nearly 40 percent increase in opioid overdose ED visits compared to 2016. The 2017 increase represents a doubling of the number recorded in 2009.

North Carolina health officials are alerting the public to a recent increase in emergency department visits by people who reported using cannabidiol (CBD) oil or a similar product in electronic cigarettes and/or vaporizing pens.

Kroger Pharmacies and Harris Teeter Pharmacies across North Carolina have joined the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services in the fight against prescription drug misuse by integrating pharmacy data sharing information into their workflow.

Governor Roy Cooper issued a proclamation recognizing Dec. 1 as World AIDS Day in North Carolina and the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services' Division of Public Health joins in this observance. World AIDS Day renews opportunities for health service agencies to collaborate with partners, raise awareness about HIV and move closer to an AIDS-free generation.

The percentage of North Carolina adults who reported smoking cigarettes in 2016 is the lowest ever recorded, 17.9 percent. Despite this milestone, North Carolina's smoking rate remains slightly higher than the national rate of 17.1 percent, and smoking continues to be the leading preventable cause of death in our state.

Multiple North Carolina counties have reported power outages related to the effects of Hurricane Irma. As people use alternative sources of power, North Carolina health officials are cautioning people about the risk of using gasoline-powered equipment in enclosed spaces.

As part of its ongoing investigation, the N.C. Department of Environmental Quality this week urged Chemours to stop discharging two additional chemical compounds into the Cape Fear River. The compounds were identified in the company's waste stream by a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency preliminary analysis shared with the state this week.

DHHS has established a Payers' Council to bring together health care payers across the state to partner on benefit design, member services and pharmacy policies to reduce opioid misuse and overdose.

A measuring tool with a radioactive component used to test density in soil compaction during construction was recovered Friday morning after the report it went missing Thursday night.

The device uses radioactive materials to test density in soil compaction during construction. It went missing from a private contractor at the McCuller's Walk Apartments jobsite, 500 Shady Summit Way in Garner, and the disappearance was reported to the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services at 7:58 p.m.

The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services is encouraging people who plan to view Monday's solar eclipse to use proper eye protection and take steps to reduce the risk of heat-related illness.

In response to the ongoing investigation into the compound GenX and drinking water in the Cape Fear region, Governor Cooper announced that the Department of Environmental Quality and Department of Health and Human Services would request critical funding to support additional scientists, engineers and health professionals to ensure water testing and protection statewide.

The advisory was issued following a review of fish tissue data for the hybrid striped bass that found elevated levels of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) in hybrid striped bass in this waterway.

The hottest temperatures of the summer are forecast to hit parts of North Carolina over the next three days, pushing thermometers to the vicinity of triple digits and stressing people and pets. Temperatures in much of the state are expected to reach the upper 90s with heat indexes topping 100 degrees Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

Data from samples collected June 19 and July 6 show that the most recent results of finished, or treated, water in all but one facility were below the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services' health goal of 140 parts per trillion. The data also reveal that concentrations of GenX are trending downward.