ICYMI: Readout of Deputy Assistant Secretary for Population Affairs visit to Salt Lake City, Utah

On January 22, 2024, staff from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Region 8 and the Office of Population Affairs (OPA), with the assistance of Planned Parenthood Association of Utah, convened a roundtable discussion regarding the status of women’s health and reproductive health in the state. The HHS staff also visited West High School and learned about the upcoming opening of their school-based health clinic which will offer integrated primary and mental health care to over 7,000 students in the district.

“We met with stakeholders regarding women’s health and reproductive health on the 51st anniversary of Roe v. Wade,” said HHS Region 8 Regional Director Lily Griego. “It was of utmost importance for us to highlight that, in the words of U.S. HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra, ‘from day one, the Biden-Harris Administration has made clear that women should have access to the healthcare they need, including contraception and other family planning services. [A]ccess to reproductive healthcare is a core priority of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.’”

Additionally, representatives from state and local health career providers and youth-serving agencies and organizations gathered at Voices for Utah Children in Salt Lake City for a Community Dialogue on Take Action for Adolescents: A Call to Action for Adolescent Health and Well-Being.

“This Call to Action articulates a vision that all adolescents in the United States have the safety, support, and resources to thrive, be healthy, and have equitable opportunity to realize their full potential,” said Jessica Swafford Marcella, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Population Affairs. “This vision is ambitious, but it’s one we all can and should work together to achieve.”

Adults listened to youth from the Wasatch County, UT school district speak about their priorities, challenges, and needs for health and well-being. The group discussed how to break down siloes and work together to create a cohesive plan with metrics that are designed by Utah communities for Utah communities. Participants shared their reflections on challenges and progress on critical community priorities.

On January 23, 2024, Regional Director Griego and DASPA Marcella, attended a session with state legislators to talk about Take Action for Adolescents. They noted that the January 22 session reflected the many ways in which Utahns are hard at work to support adolescent health and well-being.

“It was an honor to host Deputy Assistant Secretary for Population Affairs, Jessica Marcella in Salt Lake City, Utah,” said Regional Director Griego. “Being able to show my colleagues from DC what is occurring on the ground in Region 8 of HHS is always such a privilege.”

Director Griego and DASPA Marcella also met with Ozzy Escarate, Director of the Office of AI/AN Health & Family Services at the Utah Department of Health and Human Services to discuss issues impacting AI/AN youth in the state.