Calvert County Health Department

Local (410) 535-5400, DC Metro (301) 855-1353, Annapolis (410) 269-2216

Personal Health

CommunityServices

Health Threats

Home
Health Topics A-Z
Contact Directory
About Our Agency
Links to Organizations
Public Health
Font Size
Print this Page

About Our Agency: Local Public Health

While the state has primary responsibility for the health of its citizens, in Maryland public health authority is substantially decentralized to the local level.  Each county, including Baltimore City, has its own health department, which, being local, is in an advantageous position to (1) serve as a governmental presence at the local level to assure easy and timely access of local residents to its services; (2) provide a readily available mechanism for the delivery of complex services; (3) perform its functions on the basis of community-specific knowledge; and (4) inform state and federal levels of local needs and priorities.   Basic functions performed by local health departments in Maryland include:

  • Enforce health laws and regulations.
  • Identify and investigate community health problems and health hazards.
  • Develop public policy that addresses community health problems.
  • Mobilize community partnerships to address community health problems.
  • Inform, educate, and empower people to resolve personal health issues.
  • Control communicable diseases, including diagnosis and treatment of sexually transmitted diseases.
  • Ensure the high level wellness of children by means of providing family planning, maternal and child health services to high-risk persons.
  • Ensure that publicly served food is safe to eat.
  • Ensure that residential wells and septic systems are free of health hazards.
  • Monitor public swimming pools and bathing beaches.
  • Respond to emergencies that threaten human health.

In addition to the above, Calvert County Health Department, through its Core Service Agency, either provides directly or assures the availability of comprehensive mental health and substance abuse treatment services.  Other services include the issuance of birth or death certificates, enrollment of children and pregnant women in Maryland’s medical assistance program (MCHP), coordination of services for the developmentally disabled, assessment of disability in adults (STEPS), and a residential shelter for abused women and their children.

Site Policy | Contact Directory | Privacy Statement
975 Solomons Island Road North, PO Box 980, Prince Frederick, MD 20678 | (410) 535-5400 | Fax: (410) 535-5285
Calvert Crisis Response Hotline 1-877-467-5628
© Calvert County Health Department