Profile America: Public Health

Monday, April 24 — Early America certainly was a simpler society than that which we have today, but some of today’s familiar institutions were part of the national experience over 220 years ago. On this date in 1795, the city of Baltimore set up a permanent, elected board of public health, successor to the nation’s first such appointed agency. The first board was created by Maryland’s governor to cope with yellow fever epidemics beginning in 1792. At one point, the city of Baltimore quarantined or turned away travelers fleeing hard-hit Philadelphia. Still, Baltimore was affected in 1794 and hundreds died as a result. Across the country, there are 1.25 million people employed in state and local government hospitals, and in public health services. Over 700,000 are working at the local level.

You can find more facts about America from the U.S. Census Bureau online here.

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