20 targets for your physician customers to meet
Every 10 years, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services publishes a 10-year plan for addressing the most critical public health priorities and challenges. Released in August 2020, Healthy People 2030 lists 355 measurable objectives with 10-year targets. Here are 20 that are worth sharing with your physician customers.
| Objective | Rationale | Baseline | Target | |
| 1 | Increase the proportion of adults who receive appropriate evidence-based clinical preventive services | Access to preventive health care can prevent both disease and early death. | 8% of adults aged 35 years and over received all of the recommended high-priority-appropriate clinical preventive services in 2015 | 10.9% |
| 2 | Increase the proportion of persons with a usual primary care provider | Having a primary care provider is important for maintaining health and preventing and managing serious diseases. | 76% of persons had a usual primary care provider in 2017 | 84% |
| 3 | Increase the proportion of adults who receive a lung cancer screening based on the most recent guidelines | Lung cancer screening can help prevent deaths in people at high risk – mostly current and former smokers. But screening rates in this population remain low. | 4.5% of adults aged 55 to 80 years received a lung cancer screening based on the most recent guidelines in 2015 | 7.5% |
| 4 | Increase the proportion of females who receive a breast cancer screening based on the most recent guidelines | Without screening, breast cancer may be diagnosed at a later stage and lead to death. | 72.8% of females aged 50 to 74 years received a breast cancer screening in 2018 | 77.1% |
| 5 | Increase the proportion of adults who receive a colorectal cancer screening based on the most recent guidelines | Colorectal cancer is one of the most common causes of cancer deaths in the United States, particularly in minority populations | 65.2% of adults aged 50 to 75 years received a colorectal cancer screening based on the most recent guidelines in 2018 | 74.4% |
| 6 | Reduce the proportion of adults with undiagnosed prediabetes | Millions of people in the United States have prediabetes, but many don’t know it. People with prediabetes are at higher risk for type 2 diabetes, heart disease and stroke. | 38% of adults aged 18 years and over, who had not been diagnosed with prediabetes or diabetes, had undiagnosed prediabetes in 2013-16 | 33.2% |
| 7 | Reduce the proportion of adults with diagnosed diabetes with an A1c value greater than 9.0 percent | A1c levels above 9% increase the risk of complications. | 18.7% of adults aged 18 years and over with diagnosed diabetes had an A1c value greater than 9% in 2013-16 | 11.6% |
| 8 | Increase the proportion of adults with diagnosed diabetes who receive an annual urinary albumin test | Screening for high levels of albumin in the urine is to help prevent end-stage kidney disease in people with diabetes. | 48.7% of Medicare beneficiaries with diabetes mellitus had urinary albumin testing in 2016 | 66.6% |
| 9 | Reduce blood lead levels in children aged 1 to 5 years | Lead can damage children’s kidneys, blood, and brains – and at high levels can cause coma, seizures and death. | 3.31 micrograms per deciliter (µg/dL) was the concentration level of lead in blood samples at which 97.5% of the population aged 1 to 5 years was at or below in 2013-16 | 1.18 µg/dL |
| 10 | Reduce hospital-onset Clostridioides difficile infections (CDI) | The number of people who get C. diff has been higher than ever in recent years, and it causes thousands of deaths in the United States each year. | 1.00 was the national Standardized Infection Ratio (SIR) for hospital-onset CDI in 2015 | 0.70 SIR |
| 11 | Reduce hospital-onset methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infections | MRSA is one of the most common causes of infections that people get in hospitals. | 1.00 was the national Standardized Infection Ratio (SIR) for hospital-onset MRSA bacteremia infections in 2015 | 0.50 SIR |
| 12 | Reduce the proportion of adults with hypertension | People with high blood pressure are more likely to have coronary heart disease, stroke, heart failure and kidney disease. | 29.5% of adults aged 18 years and over had hypertension in 2013-16 | 27.7% |
| 13 | Reduce the mean total blood cholesterol level among adults | People with high blood cholesterol are more likely to have heart disease. | 190.9 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL) was the mean total blood cholesterol level for adults aged 20 years and over in 2013-16 | 186.4 mg/dL |
| 14 | Increase the proportion of persons aware they have chronic hepatitis B | Untreated chronic hepatitis B can cause liver disease, cirrhosis, liver cancer and death. | 32.4% of persons with chronic hepatitis B were aware they had chronic hepatitis B in 2013-16 | 56% |
| 15 | Increase the proportion of persons aware they have chronic hepatitis C | Untreated, chronic hepatitis C can cause liver disease, cirrhosis, liver cancer, and death. | 55.6% of persons with chronic hepatitis C were aware they had chronic hepatitis C in 2013-16 | 74.2% |
| 16 | Reduce the rate of hospital admissions for urinary tract infections (UDIs) among older adults | UDIs are the second most common type of infection in older adults. When not treated early, UTIs can lead to kidney failure and death. | 551.3 hospital admissions for UDIs per 100,000 adults aged 65 years and over occurred in 2016 | 496.2 per 100,000 hospital admissions |
| 17 | Reduce the rate of emergency-department visits due to falls among older adults | Falls are the leading cause of injury in older adults, often due to balance problems, poor vision, or dementia – or if they take several medications. | 6,052.2 emergency department (ED) visits for falls per 100,000 adults aged 65 years and over occurred in 2016 | 5,447 ED visits per 100,000 adults |
| 18 | Reduce the proportion of adults aged 45 years and over with moderate and severe periodontitis | Controlling diabetes and helping people quit smoking can help prevent gum disease, which can lead to tooth loss. | 44.5% of adults aged 45 years and over had moderate and severe periodontitis in 2015-16 | 39.3% |
| 19 | Reduce deaths from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) among adults | COPD is a group of diseases – including emphysema, chronic bronchitis, and non-reversible asthma – that make it hard to breathe and can cause death. | 110 COPD deaths per 100,000 adults aged 45 years and over occurred in 2018 | 107.2 COPD deaths per 100,000 adults |
| 20 | Increase the proportion of adults with symptoms of obstructive sleep apnea who seek medical evaluation | Many people in the United States have obstructive sleep apnea, which increases the risk of heart, brain and metabolic problems. | 33.1% of adults aged 20 years and over with symptoms of obstructive sleep apnea sought medical evaluation in 2015-16 | 37.1% |
| Source: Healthy People 2030, Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services |