The Purpose of HIA

Abstract

This chapter examines the value of conducting health impact assessment (HIA) in the context of the current disease burden in the USA and the lack of consideration given to the impact of policies on health. It introduces the concept of HIA, including what HIA is and how it may be useful in furthering public health goals and decision making in projects, programs, and policies. The chapter discusses the origins of HIA and presents a timeline contextualizing its development in the setting of key social and historical circumstances that led to the birth of HIA as a practice. It presents various rationales that local, regional, or federal agencies have given for promoting or engaging in HIA, and describes the level of interest shown by different organizations in funding, commissioning, or conducting HIA for different topic areas and in different US regions. The chapter ends with a discussion of how HIA can “move the dial” on health issues, and the ways in which it can and does relate to the larger policy- and decision-making context. The chapter concludes that HIA is critical to identifying, comprehending, conveying, and evaluating many of the urgent health issues facing the USA today.