In an editorial piece published April 22, 2015, the New England Journal of Medicine responds to the Supreme Court ruling in favor of same sex marriage, acknowledging same-sex marriage should be accepted both as a matter of justice and as a measure that promotes health. The Department's newest incoming faculty member, Gilbert Gonzales, PhD, is cited.

In a new study published today in the journal Pediatrics, the use of prescription narcotic painkillers is common in pregnancy and increases the likelihood a baby will be born small or early, or go through painful drug withdrawal, a new study finds.

Research revealed that millions of used bars of soap from hotels worldwide are sent to landfills every day while many people in developing nations are dying from illnesses that could be prevented with access to simple hygiene products. One non-profit, Clean the World, is changing all of that. Health Policy Professor Dr. William Schaffner is quoted.

Sten Vermund, M.D., Ph.D., has been named assistant vice chancellor for Global Health in recognition of the growing importance of globalization to Vanderbilt University Medical Center’s research, teaching and patient care missions. Vermund, the Amos Christie Professor of Global Health, directs the Vanderbilt Institute for Global Health, and is professor in the Department of Pediatrics. He is known internationally for his leadership of projects aimed at HIV/AIDS prevention, care and treatment, HPV/cervix cancer prevention, and on maternal and child health in low resource regions.

  On March 30, 2015, the Department of Health Policy hosted its second Research into Policy and Practice Lecture, “Politics & Policy: Can they live together?” in collaboration with the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Center for Health Policy at Meharry Medical College.  The distinguished panelists included the Honorable Phil Bredesen, former governor of Tennessee, and Jeffrey Selberg, the Executive Director of the Peterson Center on Healthcare.