Core Services will begin to go through a formal rule-making process by the State Board of Health in 2010.

The Act authorizes each county in Colorado to establish or participate in a local or district public health agency, under a local Board of Health, to provide public health and environmental health services to residents in the communities they serve.

These county or district public health agencies organized under statute are to provide, or assure the provision of and direct people to, core public health services. Further, these services are to be provided in accord with a set of standards which ensure the quality and distribution of services. Core public health services are those public health services minimally necessary to meet the public health needs of the population served by the county or district.

These services may be provided directly by the local public health agency or by the local public health agency in conjunction with other partners in the public health system; regardless of the delivery system, however, the county or district public health agency has an obligation to assure that core public health services are available throughout the local jurisdiction.

The following is a draft based on input gathered from public health professionals across the state during summer 2009.  Input will continue to be gathered from local boards of health, agencies and other interested parties.  Core Services will begin to go through a formal rule-making process by the State Board of Health in 2010.