From Nov. 13 to Dec. 4, sleep medicine professionals and sleep scientists have a brief window of opportunity to provide public input to ensure that Healthy People 2020 continues to emphasize the importance of healthy sleep as a public health priority.

In 2010 the Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion (ODPHP) within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) added Sleep Health as a new topic area to Healthy People 2020, which provides science-based, 10-year national objectives for improving the health of all Americans. The four Sleep Health Objectives in Healthy People 2020 are:

  1. Increase the proportion of persons with symptoms of obstructive sleep apnea who seek medical evaluation
  2. Reduce the rate of vehicular crashes per 100 million miles traveled that are due to drowsy driving
  3. Increase the proportion of students in grades 9 through 12 who get sufficient sleep
  4. Increase the proportion of adults who get sufficient sleep

For a limited time the public is invited to suggest additional objectives for consideration that address critical public health issues within the existing topic areas of Healthy People 2020.  Proposed new objectives must meet all nine of the objective selection criteria.  For example, each objective must have an identified data source, or potential data source, as well as baseline data.

The AASM encourages members to suggest new objectives that will address gaps in the current Sleep Health topic area.  Members also are encouraged to provide constructive comments supporting the overall importance of promoting healthy sleep and funding nationally representative sleep data collection.

All comments received during the public comment period will be reviewed carefully by the topic area workgroups, Federal Interagency Workgroup on Healthy People 2020, and other Healthy People 2020 stakeholders.  Please review the objective selection criteria prior to submitting comments.

To participate in the public comment period, visit www.healthypeople.gov beginning Nov. 13, 2013. Comments will be accepted through 5 p.m. EST on Dec. 4, 2013. 

Get complete details on the Healthy People 2020 Public Comment page.  Questions regarding public comment can be submitted by email to HP2020@hhs.gov.