Washington’s Health Equity Zones Initiative seeks to reduce health inequities by supporting communities in a geographic area to identify their most pressing health concerns and develop solutions that meet the unique needs of their communities. During the pilot of the Initiative, the Washington State Department of Health will invest in three geographic communities across the state that are most impacted by health inequities.
The Health Equity Zones Community Advisory Council created a priority designation for each of the three zones: rural, urban, and Native communities. Through this nomination process, rural and urban zones will be selected. Tribal community representatives on the Community Advisory Council are developing the selection process for the zone dedicated to Native communities. If you would like to learn more about this zone and/or participate in the development process, please contact HealthEquityZones@doh.wa.gov.
For more information about the HEZ Initiative, refer to the FAQ webpage or contact HealthEquityZones@doh.wa.gov.
- Eligibility Criteria
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Community members interested in nominating their community as a rural or urban Health Equity Zone are encouraged to complete the HEZ Nomination Form. For communities to be eligible for nomination, they must meet the following criteria:
- Community must be geographically defined and connected. A zone should be small enough for focused solutions.
- Nominators must indicate whether their community is rural or urban. To support communities in making this determination, the Community Advisory Council and Community Workgroup created definitions of rural and urban.
- Nominators must live in Washington state and have a demonstrated connection to the community being nominated. Those who live in Washington state seasonally or as temporary/migratory farm workers are eligible.
- Zone Selection Priorities
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The zone selection process will prioritize communities most impacted by health inequities. This includes communities with significant populations that identify as black, indigenous, and people of color; immigrants, migrant farmworkers, refugees, and asylum seekers; low-income, unhoused, and under-resourced; living with disabilities and mental illness; elders or seniors; LGBTQIA+ and/or having limited access to healthcare.
- How to Submit a Nomination Form
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The Health Equity Zones Nomination Form for rural and urban zones will launch on Monday March 13, 2023. Nomination Forms will be accepted until Sunday April 23, 2023 at 11:59 p.m. PST. Selected zones are expected to be announced in July 2023.
Nomination Forms may be submitted online or by completing the PDF version (English and Spanish only). To submit the PDF version of the Nomination Form, please email it to HealthEquityZones@doh.wa.gov with the subject line "Nomination Form".
Alternative Format Submissions
Nominators may submit their Nomination Form responses through recorded audio or video instead of written responses. Only one format should be submitted per nomination.
Nomination Forms received through alternative formats will be transcribed for review and scoring. To submit your Nomination Form in audio or video format, please email it to HealthEquityZones@doh.wa.gov with the subject line "Nomination Form".
For questions and technical assistance, please contact HealthEquityZones@doh.wa.gov.