Improving the Health Literacy of the Population

Improving the Health Literacy of the Population

Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention

Improving the Health Literacy of the Population:

A look inside the Healthy People 2020 Objectives

The Healthy People initiative establishes disease prevention and health promotion objectives for the Nation. The first objective in the Health Communication and Health Information Technology (HC/HIT) topic is, improve the health literacy of the population by:

• Increasing the proportion of persons who report their health care provider always gave them easy-to-understand instructions about what to do to take care of their illness or health condition
• Increasing the proportion of persons who report their health care provider always asked them to describe how they will follow the instructions
• Increasing the proportion of persons who report their health care providers’ office always offered help in filling out a form

For data on the objectives and more information on the Health Communication and Health Information Technology objectives click here. To learn more about health literacy visit the CDC Health Literacy website.

Also, check out the Clear Communication Index! A research-based tool that helps you develop and assess communication materials for your intended audience.