Mineola, NY - Nassau County Executive Thomas R. Suozzi announced today that two of the Nassau County Department of Health's programs have received the National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO) prestigious Model Practices Award for excellence in public health.

The Model Practices Award acknowledges a program, resource or tool demonstrating exemplary and replicable qualities in response to a local public health need.

The programs are: Targeted Tuberculin Testing in New Immigrant Communities and a Review Process Program for Siting New or Renovated Children's Day Care Centers.

• The first program provides targeted testing and case management for high-risk populations to minimize the occurrence of tuberculosis in the new immigrant population, which represents 78% of Nassau's TB cases.
• The second program conducts a comprehensive review process including water and food protection, general sanitation, air quality, lead hazards and proximity to contaminated or hazardous waste sites.

"I congratulate the Health Department," said Nassau County Executive Thomas R. Suozzi, "for its leadership, innovation and responsiveness in addressing community health issues. These programs demonstrate how Nassau County and our community partners can effectively work together."

NACCHO President Jody Henry Hershey, MD, MPH said, "While there are many health departments throughout the nation doing laudable work in their communities, these two sustainable collective model programs reach the core of public health."

The two Nassau County programs will be included in NACCHO's new model practices database - an online, searchable collection of successful practices covering a broad range of public health areas.