California Center for Public Health Advocacy

CA Legislation

CA's Annual Physical Fitness Testing in Jeopardy!

California’s ability to effectively track childhood obesity and overweight rates is at risk. California schools are currently required to administer an annual physical fitness test (PFT), also known as the Fitnessgram, to every 5th, 7th, and 9th grader. The test includes the only objective metric to track obesity collected in California. The data produced through this annual testing have been used for countless studies, have been the basis for building support for policies to improve student health at both the state and local level, and have contributed to numerous successful grant applications for obesity prevention funding. The Governor’s budget proposes to suspend and eliminate the requirement that schools undertake this testing, which puts this critical dataset at risk. To send the legislators crafting the state’s budget a fax urging them to maintain annual physical fitness testing in the schools, click here.

What's New

Films Support
Healthy Choices

While limiting screen time is certainly an anti-obesity strategy we support, the coming weeks provide exciting opportunities for amplifying public health messages through cinematic storytelling. Weight of the Nation is a multi-part series airing on HBO Monday, May 14 and Tuesday, May 15. The film, whose tag line is “to win, we have to lose,” explores the scope of the obesity epidemic, its consequences, and the challenges we face in addressing the problem. Last Call at the Oasis, a film that investigates the threats facing the global drinking water supply, is showing in select theaters throughout California during May. It provides an important backdrop to the work being done to increase water consumption as an alternative to drinking sugary drinks. Both films can be catalysts for much-needed dialogue and action. Perhaps it isn’t a coincidence that the apex of all this film-watching coincides with Bike Month?

CCPHA NEWS

CCPHA Founder/Director Honored

On April 5, Dr. Harold Goldstein, founder and executive director of the California Center for Public Health Advocacy (CCPHA) received the 2012 Beverlee A. Myers Award for Excellence in Public Health at a ceremony in Sacramento. Dr. Ron Chapman, Director of California Public Health Department, called Goldstein a visionary as he presented him the award.

In accepting the award, Goldstein commended his public health colleagues and applauded California for its leadership on tobacco and obesity prevention efforts such as the upcoming ReThink Your Drink social marketing campaign on sugary drinks to be launched this summer.

Goldstein founded CCPHA in 1999 and has served as its executive directed since then. Read about Goldstein’s background and contributions here. Today CCPHA’s staff of twenty work on state and local policies.