HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius has declared a public health emergency for North Dakota in response to floods affecting the state. The action ensures beneficiaries of Medicare, Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) receive benefits during this emergency time period.

The awards to cities, towns, and tribes across the country will provide communities with the resources to create healthy choices for residents, such as increasing availability of healthy foods and beverages, improving access to safe places for physical activity, discouraging tobacco use, and encouraging smoke-free environments.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued a final rule containing a broad set of federal requirements designed to significantly curb access to and the appeal of cigarettes and smokeless tobacco products to children and adolescents in the United States.