Press Releases

PRESS RELEASE — As North Carolinians prepare for holiday gatherings, celebrations and community events, the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services is encouraging residents consider food safety before purchasing prepared meals or food items, especially from individuals advertising food for sale through Facebook and other social media platforms. From holiday meals and party platters advertised online to food trucks and temporary vendors at seasonal events, knowing where your food comes from and whether it has been prepared safely can help reduce the risk of foodborne illness.

PRESS RELEASE — The NC Department of Health and Human Services today launched a new dashboard sharing all projects that were awarded Rural Health Transformation Program funds in Year 1, along with the counties served, the amounts committed, and brief descriptions of the work. The announcement comes after the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) awarded an initial $100 million to North Carolina for Year 2 Rural Health Transformation Program funding, with additional funding to follow. The program aims to improve health care in rural communities, help people get better care, and maintain rural health services.

PRESS RELEASE — Today, the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services joined partners at the UNC School of Medicine’s (SOM) Department of Pediatrics in celebrating 50 years of the NC Child Medical Evaluation Program (CMEP), a program established in response to the growing need for county child protective services (CPS) agencies to have access to high-quality, expert medical evaluations for children undergoing CPS assessments. Photos from today’s event are available.

MEDIA ADVISORY – The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services will host a virtual webinar to provide updates on the Transitions to Community Living (TCL) program following the U.S. Department of Justice finding NCDHHS in substantial compliance with the TCL settlement agreement.

MEDIA ADVISORY — The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services will host a live fireside chat and tele-town hall on Thursday, Oct. 29, from 6 to 7 p.m., to discuss how parents and health care providers who work with young people can support youth tobacco cessation.

MEDIA ADVISORY — The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services will host a live fireside chat and tele-town hall on Wednesday, Oct. 14, from 6 to 7 p.m. to discuss how new federal and state laws will impact NC Medicaid, including who will need to meet a new work and community engagement requirement and how to prepare for upcoming changes to the program.

MEDIA ADVISORY — NC Health and Human Services Secretary Dev Sangvai and additional NCDHHS leadership staff will get their fall respiratory illness season vaccinations at the North Carolina State Laboratory of Public Health on Friday, Oct. 16 at 10:30 a.m. Secretary Sangvai and additional NCDHHS leadership will then be available for a brief media availability.

PRESS RELEASE — The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services today announced the first reported flu-related death of the 2026-2027 flu season, which will be shared in next week’s NC Respiratory Virus Summary Dashboard update. An adult in the central part of the state died due to complications of flu during the first week of October. To protect the privacy of the family, no additional information will be released. NCDHHS is encouraging people to take steps now to protect themselves and their families from seasonal respiratory illnesses — flu, COVID-19 and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV).

PRESS RELEASE — Today Governor Stein and the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services announced more than $17 million for investments to improve mental health services through North Carolina’s Rural Health Transformation Program.

PRESS RELEASE — The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services is working alongside the U.S. Department of Agriculture to help prevent the spread of rabies. Starting in early October, Wildlife Services will be distributing oral rabies vaccine for raccoons in western North Carolina

PRESS RELEASE – The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services today announced an updated Strategic Plan for the next four years alongside four key priority areas of focus. Together, the priority areas and strategic plan provide a framework for NCDHHS to strengthen partnerships with communities and stakeholders, advance innovative solutions and achieve the department’s mission of providing and ensuring access to essential services for all North Carolinians.

PRESS RELEASE — The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services and the North Carolina Department of Information Technology today announced the launch of the Rural Health Innovation Fund. This statewide investment fund will distribute approximately $20 million per year for up to five years to help rural providers modernize their infrastructure, making it easier for them to care for patients and operate their practices.

PRESS RELEASE – The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services today announced an expansion in donor human milk access sites across North Carolina, making it easier for families to obtain and donate pasteurized donor milk.

PRESS RELEASE — Babies born in North Carolina will now be screened for two additional disorders, along with the other disorders screened for by the NC Department of Health and Human Services’ Newborn Screening Program. Newborns will now be screened for Infantile Krabbe Disease and Guanidinoacetate Methyltransferase (GAMT) Deficiency. This comes as NCDHHS celebrates the 60th anniversary of the state’s Newborn Screening Program this September during National Newborn Screening Awareness Month.

STATEMENT — The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services is returning control of child welfare services to the Bertie County Department of Social Services, effective today. NCDHHS temporarily assumed leadership in August 2025 after identifying serious concerns about child safety. Since then, the state and county have worked collaboratively to stabilize and improve child welfare services and ensure appropriate standards of care.

PRESS RELEASE — The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services has posted findings of a public health investigation to identify the source of exposure for a previously reported rare brain infection case caused by Naegleria fowleri, an amoeba (one-celled living organism) commonly found in warm freshwater.

PRESS RELEASE — Today Governor Stein and the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services announced $1.25 million in federal funding through the North Carolina Rural Health Transformation Program to expand preventive and acute health care, provide nutrition support, and address behavioral health needs. Five organizations will receive funding: the Appalachian District Health Department, Blue Ridge Community Health Services, First Health of the Carolinas, Mountain Community Health Partnership, and Wilson County Health Department.

PRESS RELEASE — The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services received three federal grants from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) totaling almost $7 million to improve the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, enhance Mobile Crisis Teams and provide treatment for Substance Use Disorders (SUD) for pregnant and postpartum women. September is National Suicide Prevention Month, and these grants will help NCDHHS continue its efforts to lower suicide deaths and attempts in North Carolina.

PRESS RELEASE — Today the United States Department of Justice (USDOJ) acknowledged significant strides North Carolina has made in improving community inclusion for people with severe and persistent mental illness (SPMI) and serious mental illness (SMI). USDOJ and the State of North Carolina filed a joint motion asking the federal district court to terminate its oversight of the Transition to Community Living settlement agreement as a result of the State having met major requirements with the agreement’s terms. Since 2012, NCDHHS has overseen the implementation of the settlement terms through sustained investments to strengthen infrastructure to support people living with SPMI/SMI through Transitions to Community Living (TCL). Today, the State reaffirms its commitment to the principles of Olmstead, and to continuing to maintain and strengthen accessible and high-quality services and supports for this community.

PRESS RELEASE — Today, the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services commemorated 988 Day with the unveiling of 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline signage to put in state government parking lots throughout Raleigh. These efforts, in partnership with the North Carolina Department of Administration, are bringing awareness to the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline and support NCDHHS’ broader crisis response efforts.