Policy Resources
"All Legislative Powers herein granted shall be vested in a Congress of the United States, which shall consist of a Senate and House of Representatives."
(Article I, Section 1, of the United States Constitution)
How Laws are Made
Learn how laws, regulations, and executive orders are made and how to look them up.
Laws begin as ideas.
Advocacy Toolkit
APHN Public Health Policy Advocacy Guide Book and Tool Kit
Public policy advocacy is an important professional competency for public health nurses and other public health professionals. In 2016, The Association of Public Health Nurses (APHN) Public Health Policy Committee prepared a public health policy advocacy guidebook and toolkit as a resource for public health nurses and other public health professionals to build knowledge and skills related to public policy advocacy. The toolkit was reviewed and updated by the current APHN Public Health Policy Committee in 2021. Updates include reformatting of the toolkit into user-friendly sections, adding new resources as well as a new section on using social media for advocacy, created in conjunction with context expert Dr. Carole Meyers.
Visit the APHN Advocacy Toolkit site for more information and to download the kit.
Public Policy Toolkit
A new Public Policy Toolkit from the NLN (National League for Nursing) equips nurses and nurse educators with the tools, strategies, and knowledge needed to achieve these goals. This free resource emphasizes the importance of evidence-informed policymaking to minimize bias and empower policymakers.
The toolkit features detailed and informative sections on:
- Building nursing’s power through advocacy
- Building nursing’s power at the policy table
- Evidence-informed health policymaking
- Public policy for nurse educators
Additional resources include examples of modules and content for health policy courses to be taught in nursing schools, and objectives and assignments across educational levels from BSN to doctoral programs.
Use this toolkit to deepen your learning on matters of public policy so you can get involved and make a difference.
APHA Policy Resources
Policy Statements - American Public Health Association
What is a policy statement? APHA members develop policy statements on key public health topics, from obesity to breastfeeding to control of infectious diseases to eliminating health disparities.
Public Health Policy Internship - American Public Health Association
Public health policy interns work primarily with staff in the Center for Public Health Policy (Center) and receive hands-on experience and insight into the integration of science, policy and practice in public health.
Policy Statements and Advocacy
APHA is the primary voice for public health advocacy. We lead the way to protect all Americans and their communities from preventable, serious health threats.
CDC Resources
Health in All Policies
Health in All Policies (HiAP) is a collaborative approach that integrates and articulates health considerations into policymaking across sectors to improve the health of all communities and people.
CDC, Policy and Strategy
CDC’s Policy Process provides a systematic way to develop policies that can help you address public health problems in your community. The policy process is like a journey that takes you through five domains, including stakeholder engagement and evaluation. It ultimately results in implementing a policy.
CDC, Health Policy Analysis and Evidence
Helping make the case for evidence-driven policy to improve health.
Additional CDC, Policy Resources
Additional Policy Resources
National Prevention Strategy
Explore each Strategic Direction and Priority Area in this graphic to find topic-specific resources for each action step
The OpEd Project's mission is to increase the range of voices and quality of ideas we hear in the world. We provide trainings, fellowships, and resources to amplify underrepresented voices, and change our public discourse for the better.
RWJF Health Policy Fellows The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Health Policy Fellows program is the nation’s most prestigious learning experience the nexus of health science, policy, and politics.
WHO - Policy Process
The development of national health policies, strategies, and plans is a complex and dynamic process. Its precise nature varies from country to country according to the political, historical, and socio-economic context.
American Academy of Nursing (Policy)
American Association of Colleges of Nursing
Council of Public Health Nursing Organizations
