2025-2030 Prevention Agenda Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

1. What is the Prevention Agenda?

The Prevention Agenda, also known as New York's State Health Improvement Plan (SHIP), is a six-year plan that outlines the state's top health priorities and how they can be addressed. It provides a framework for coordinated state and local efforts to enhance the health and well-being of all New Yorkers.

2. How will the Prevention Agenda be implemented?

The Prevention Agenda is designed to be implemented by local health departments and hospitals, along with a wide range of public and private partners. The list of priorities, objectives, and evidence-based interventions in the Prevention Agenda provides flexible options for all communities, as well as approaches to improve outcomes for New Yorkers of all ages.

3. What is the role of local health departments and hospitals in the Prevention Agenda process?

Local health departments and hospitals are leaders in local community health improvement planning. These entities are required to conduct community assessments and develop improvement plans.

  • NYS Public Health Law Section 602-a mandates that local health departments work with community partners to conduct Community Health Assessments (CHAs) and develop Community Health Improvement Plans (CHIPs). The statute specifies that submission cannot be required more frequently than once every two years.
  • The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) requires tax-exempt hospitals to conduct a community health assessment and adopt an implementation strategy (Community Service Plan) to address the identified needs every three years to maintain non-profit status. Additionally, New York State Public Health Law Section 2803-l requires non-profit hospitals to fulfill Community Service Plan (CSP) reporting obligations at least every three years.

4. Where can the 2025-2030 Prevention Agenda be found?

The 2025-2030 Prevention Agenda is available on the New York State Department of Health website under the Prevention Agenda tab.

5. How can data for Community Health Assessment (CHA), Community Health Improvement Plan (CHIP), and Community Service Plan (CSP) development be accessed?

The New York State Department of Health manages a variety of data dashboards with readily available data that can help local health departments and hospitals with conducting their Community Health Assessments (CHAs) and developing their Community Health Improvement Plans (CHIPs)/Community Service Plans (CSPs).

Available data includes community health dashboards, topic-specific dashboards, the previous Prevention Agenda cycle dashboard, and more. All dashboards are located on the New York State Department of Health Data & Reports website. Additional data resources for the Prevention Agenda can be found on the Community Health Planning Resources page of the Prevention Agenda website.

6. How do local health departments and/or hospitals align the Community Health Improvement Plan (CHIP)/Community Service Plan (CSP) with the Prevention Agenda?

The 2025-2030 Prevention Agenda Community Health Improvement Planning Guidance ensures organizational alignment with the new Prevention Agenda framework by guiding local health departments and hospitals through the process of selecting priorities and objectives that support the State's vision. The guidance can be found on the Prevention Agenda's Community Health Planning Resources page.

7. How many priorities should local health departments and hospitals select for their Community Health Improvement Plan (CHIP)/Community Service Plan (CSP)?

There are 24 priorities in the 2025-2030 Prevention Agenda. Local health departments and hospitals must select:

  • At least three of these priorities for their plans and;
    • At least one of those priorities should represent one of the following social issues affecting health: Poverty; Unemployment; Nutrition Security; Housing Stability and Affordability; Health and Wellness Promoting Schools; and Opportunities for Continued Education.
  • All priorities should be informed by the information established in the Community Health Assessment (CHA).

8. How many objectives should local health departments and hospitals select for their Community Health Improvement Plan (CHIP)/Community Service Plan (CSP)?

Each priority has established objectives and indicators. For each of the three or more selected priorities, choose one or more objectives. At least two of the selected objectives must be SMARTIE (specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, time-based, inclusive, and equitable), addressing populations experiencing disparities (subpopulations of focus). Note: Objectives labeled with a whole number (e.g., 2.0) are SMART (specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-based) objectives that track outcomes for the general population. Objectives labeled with decimal numbers (e.g., 2.1, 2.2) are SMARTIE (specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, time-based, inclusive, and equitable) objectives that focus on subpopulations experiencing disparities.

9. Do local health departments and hospitals have the flexibility to create their own objectives?

It is required that local health departments and hospitals select a minimum of three (3) priorities and associated objectives in alignment with the 2025-2030 Prevention Agenda. However, they may include additional objectives beyond those in the workplan template if they meet the requirements as outlined in the Community Health Improvement Planning Guidance For Local Health Departments and Hospitals in New York State (PDF). Additional objectives must include the following information:

  • An identified desired outcome
  • A specified population or subgroup that the objective addresses
  • An identified tracking measure (indicator) — used to determine whether the objective has been achieved, typically tied to a population-level health outcome (e.g., screening rate, immunization rate, % adults who smoke)
  • A specified data source
  • A baseline and baseline year
  • A 2030 target

10. How many interventions should Local health departments and hospitals select for their Community Health Improvement Plans (CHIPs)/Community Service Plans (CSPs)?

For each chosen priority, local health departments and hospitals should select at least one intervention per objective. There is no limit to additional interventions that may be included in Community Health Improvement Plans (CHIPs)/Community Service Plans (CSPs).

11. Can local health departments and hospitals select interventions that are not referenced in the Prevention Agenda?

Local health departments and hospitals can select interventions not highlighted in the 2025-2030 Prevention Agenda, but they mustbe evidence-based, meaning that they have been proven to work. If not evidence-based, then best or promising practices must be used. For resources on evidence-based interventions, please see the Evidence-Based Resources section at the bottom of the Community Health Planning Resources tab on the Prevention Agenda website.

Additionally, the New York State Department of Health asks that interventions not selected from the 2025-2030 Prevention Agenda include a citation or link supporting their effectiveness in the intervention cell of the workplan template, provided under the Community Health Planning Resources tab on the Prevention Agenda website.

If the selected intervention is not yet described in the literature, the local health department or hospital should provide evidence demonstrating its impact in the workplan template.

12. The Workplan Template requires organizations to identify a family of measures for each intervention selected. What is a family of measures, and how should they be chosen for interventions?

The "Family of Measures" indicates the specific metric or measure used to evaluate the progress of implementing a chosen intervention. It is highly recommended that intermediate measures be used to track progress (e.g., number of meetings held with the partner organization, the number of collaborative intervention-related events held with the partner organization). Input and output measures (e.g., number of organizations partnered with, number of referrals made to food insecurity resources) can also be used.

13. What should be included in the timeline cells if the implementation of an intervention began before the 2025-2030 Prevention Agenda cycle started?

Organizations will often document interventions that have been implemented before the beginning of the current Prevention Agenda cycle. If an intervention is expected to be implemented for the duration of the Prevention Agenda cycle, the beginning and end dates of the cycle should be recorded in the timeline cell for the corresponding intervention.

14. Can local health departments or hospitals alter the template?

Local health departments and hospitals should refrain from altering elements of the Workplan Template, as this could affect the Department's plan analysis and feedback processes. If you have questions on identifying where to input specific information or quantitative data, please contact the Office of Local Health Services Prevention Agenda Team at prevention@health.ny.gov for assistance.

15. What are joint plans for Community Health Assessments (CHAs), Community Health Improvement Plans (CHIPs), and Community Service Plans (CSPs)?

A joint plan refers to local health departments and hospitals within the same service area(s) or jurisdiction(s) collaborating to develop and submit one assessment document and one health improvement plan document for all involved organizations.

16. How does submission for joint plans work if hospitals and local health departments have different deadlines?

We recommend submitting one comprehensive Community Health Assessment (CHA)/Community Health Improvement Plan (CHIP) document and one Excel workplan by December 31, 2025, to meet Internal Revenue Service (IRS) requirements for hospitals and avoid duplicative reporting for local health departments.

  • If the local health department chooses to submit a joint plan later by June 2026:
  • The hospital must still submit its Community Health Assessment (CHA), Community Service Plan (CSP), and work plan by December 31, 2025, to meet Internal Revenue Service (IRS) requirements.
  • The local health department may then submit the final joint plan by June 2026, which must include a Community Health Improvement Plan (CHIP) and an Excel workplan covering all selected priorities, interventions, and details for both the local health department and participating hospitals.
  • Both the December 2025 hospital workplan and the June 2026 final workplan must clearly indicate that it is a joint plan by listing the submitting local health department and all participating hospitals on the first tab.
  • The New York State Department of Health will review only the final, comprehensive plan.

17. When are local health departments required to submit their Community Health Assessments (CHAs) and Community Health Improvement Plans (CHIPs) to the New York State Department of Health?

Local health departments must submit their Community Health Assessments (CHAs) by December 31, 2025. Community Health Improvement Plans (CHIPs) can be submitted at the same time as Community Health Assessments (CHAs) but must be submitted by June 30, 2026.

18. When are hospitals required to submit their Community Health Assessments (CHAs) and Community Service Plans (CSPs) to the New York State Department of Health?

Hospitals must submit Community Health Assessments (CHAs) and Community Service Plans (CSPs) by December 31, 2025.

19. What should be submitted with the Community Health Assessment (CHA) and Community Health Improvement Plan (CHIP)/Community Service Plan (CSP)?

Along with the Community Health Assessment (CHA) and Community Health

Improvement Plan (CHIP)/Community Service Plan (CSP), the following should also be submitted:

20. How should the Community Health Assessment (CHA) and Community Health Improvement Plan (CHIP)/Community Service Plan (CSP) be submitted?

The Community Health Assessment (CHA) and Community Health Improvement Plan (CHIP)/Community Service Plan (CSP) should be submitted via email to prevention@health.ny.gov with the subject line "CHA/CHIP/CSP. County Name LHDName/HospitalName."

  • For example: CHA/CHIP. Albany County. Albany County Department of Health.

21. What should local health departments and hospitals expect after submission?

Submissions will be acknowledged through an email from prevention@health.ny.gov within one week. If an acknowledgment is not received within one week, please contact the Prevention Agenda team at prevention@health.ny.gov.

New York State Department of Health staff will review submissions and provide feedback via email to organization liaisons provided in the workplan template by December 2026. More details regarding the feedback and review process will be communicated with local health departments and hospitals in the future.

22. Do local health departments and/or hospitals have to submit a report annually?

Yes, a Community Health Improvement Plan (CHIP)/Community Service Plan (CSP) progress report is required to be submitted by December 31st of each year of the 2025- 2030 Prevention Agenda.

In December 2028, local health departments and hospitals will submit mid-cycle assessments, in place of an annual report, where chosen priorities can be reassessed as necessary.

23. What should be included in the Community Health Improvement Plan (CHIP)/ Community Service Plan (CSP) annual reports?

Local health departments and hospitals should submit an updated Excel workplan that includes activities to date for the reporting year, in addition to data for any measures used to track progress.

More information on the annual report process and documentation will be shared with local health departments and hospitals in 2026.

24. What is the mid-cycle assessment, and what should be included in the submission?

The Community Health Improvement Planning Guidance For Local Health Departments and Hospitals in New York State (PDF) introduces a new requirement for local health departments: a mid-cycle assessment, due by December 2028. The mid-cycle assessment aligns with hospital requirements to submit a Community Service Plan (CSP) to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) every three years. The purpose of the mid-cycle assessment is to confirm that selected priorities are still relevant and to ensure that collaboration with hospitals continues throughout the cycle. In addition, this requirement supports local health departments that wish to pursue Public Health

Accreditation Board (PHAB) accreditation, as it helps meet the requirements of conducting a Community Health Assessment (CHA)/Community Health Improvement Plan (CHIP) every 5 years.

The mid-cycle assessment guide will be released later in the Prevention Agenda cycle. The process will primarily involve a data refresh, focusing on key health indicators, emerging trends, and demographic shifts. Based on the findings of the mid-cycle assessment, local health departments can adjust the priorities and interventions in their Community Health Improvement Plans (CHIPs). If the priorities remain relevant, no further action will be needed.

25. How should the Community Health Assessment (CHA) and Community Health Improvement Plan (CHIP)/Community Service Plan (CSP) be published and disseminated?

New York State Department of Health recommends that organizations publish and disseminate their Community Health Assessment (CHA) and Community Health Improvement Plan (CHIP)/Community Service Plan (CSP) to allow the public and their communities insights into the strategic health plans, partnerships, and goals. The New York State Department of Health does not dictate the format for publication. However, accredited local health departments must review and comply with Public Health Accreditation Board (PHAB) requirements and hospitals must review and comply with Internal Revenue Service (IRS) requirements regarding publication.

26. How can organizations receive important Prevention Agenda updates? Is there a ListServ, and how can I join?

The New York State Department of Health created a ListServ for those who would like to receive general updates on the Prevention Agenda. The Contact Us tab on the Prevention Agenda website provides instructions for those interested in joining the ListServ.

To subscribe to the ListServ, send an email to listserv@list.ny.gov with the following in the body of the message (no subject line needed):

  • SUBSCRIBE prevention-L YourFirstName YourLastName
  • For example: SUBSCRIBE prevention-L Jane Doe

27. Can any organization or individual be added to the Community Health Improvement Plan (CHIP)/Community Service Plan (CSP) Liaison ListServ?

The Liaison ListServs are only for local health department and hospital workplan liaisonsinvolved in the Community Health Improvement Plan (CHIP)/Community Service Plan (CSP) process. If you are a workplan liaison and need to subscribe to the Community Health Improvement Plan (CHIP) or Community Service Plan (CSP) Liaison ListServ, please reach out to prevention@health.ny.gov. Workplan liaisons will receive reminders regarding workplan materials, submissions, deadlines, and feedback.

  • For those who do not serve as workplan liaisons, please subscribe to the Prevention Agenda ListServ to receive general updates.