Glossary of Acronyms

ACA – Affordable Care Act

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, often shortened to the Affordable Care Act (ACA) is a United States federal statute enacted by the 111th United States Congress and signed into law by President Barack Obama on March 23, 2010.

CHA – Community Health Assessment

Community health assessment (CHA) is a systematic examination of the health status indicators for a given population that is used by health departments to identify key problems and assets in a community. The ultimate goal of a community health assessment is to develop strategies to address the community's health needs and identified issues.

CHIP – Community Health Improvement Plan

A community health improvement plan (or CHIP) is a long-term, systematic effort by health departments to address public health problems based on the results of community health assessment activities and the community health improvement process.

CHNA – Community Health Needs Assessment

Community health needs assessments (CHNA) and implementation strategies are required of tax-exempt hospitals as a result of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.

COPD – Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a lung disease characterized by chronic obstruction of lung airflow that interferes with normal breathing and is not fully reversible.

IRS – Internal Revenue Service

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is a bureau of the Department of Treasury that is tasked with the enforcement of income tax laws and oversees the collection of federal income taxes.

990 - IRS Form 990 Schedule H

The tax documentation that a tax-exempt hospital must file with its tax return describing the community benefit it provides. It includes a section on CHNA process, product, and implementation plans.

LHD – Local Health Department

A local health department (LHD) is a government agency in the United States on the front lines of public health. Local health departments may be entities of local or state government and often report to a mayor, city council, county board of health or county commission.

PHAB – Public Health Accreditation Board

The Public Health Accreditation Board (PHAB) is a nonprofit organization dedicated to improving and protecting the health of the public by advancing and ultimately transforming the quality and performance of state, local, tribal, and territorial public health departments.

SHA – State Health Assessment

A State Health Assessment (SHA) is a systematic approach to accessing, analyzing, and using data to educate and mobilize communities, develop priorities, garner resources, and plan actions to improve the public's health. Similar to a CHA but at a statewide level.

SHIP - State Health Improvement Plan

The State Health Improvement Plan (SHIP) is a systematic plan to address issues identified in the SHA. Based on the SHA, the SHIP describes how the state health department and the communities it serves can work together to improve the health of the population.

SIDS – Sudden Infant Death Syndrome

Sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) is the unexplained death, usually during sleep, of a seemingly healthy baby less than a year old.