Licensure, certification, and public health regulation is done at all levels of government: national, state, county and city. Credentialing, or certification may also be done by professional organizations or associations. City, county and state governments often are responsible for issuing permits, conducting inspections, issuing citations, collecting fines or fees, and conducting authorized training. They may enact codes, establish regulations, and set policies governing these matters. Wide-ranging activities that impact public health-- anything from animal control and building codes enforcement, to medical examiners services (e.g. issuing death certificates, autopsy services, cremation authorization, burial permits, etc.) is the responsibility of government.
One of the goals of the Arizona Department of Health Services is to ensure the health and safety of all Arizonans through a comprehensive system for licensing, monitoring, and technical assistance.1 Unfortunately state funding did not keep pace with the legal requirement to inspect and license 900 new childcare and healthcare facilities added between 2003 and 2006. Failure to investigate the growing number of complaints, up 1,137 since 2003, put vulnerable children, hospital and nursing home patients at risk for abuse or neglect. To remedy the shortfall in state inspectors, and to assure that healthy and safe care is given in such institutions, the legislature added 22.5 FTE's in the 2007 budget.
