A representative from Loma Linda University Health was part of a taskforce that briefed members of the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate this summer.
Dora Barilla, DrPH, assistant vice president for strategy and innovation, LLU Health, was part of the Community Preventive Services Task Force Congressional Briefing, held June 21 in the Rayburn House Office Building and the Dirksen Senate Office Building in Washington, D.C.
“The briefings were about the Community Guide and Community Preventive Services Task Force,” says Dr. Barilla, “and how leaders of the employer arena and community use the Community Guide to inform decisions about programs, policies, and strategies to improve health.”
Dr. Barilla shared the spotlight with Becky Lyons, manager of health care design for Wegmans Food Markets; Josie Gonzales, San Bernardino County Supervisor; and Paul Leon, mayor of the city of Ontario, California.
“My role,” Dr. Barilla explains, “was to give a brief overview of the Community Benefit Collaborative we’ve organized in the Inland Empire, and how I used the Community Guide to inform the selection of proven approaches to prevent cardiovascular disease.”
She adds, “This was a great opportunity to showcase Loma Linda’s role as an engine of health improvement, brightening the blips of LLU Health and the Inland Empire on the radar of four powerful Congressional committees.”
The Energy and Commerce Committee sponsored the briefing for the House of Representatives. For the Senate, the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee sponsored the briefing.
