About the Initiative
In 2021, Senate Bill 5052 created the foundation for the Department of Health (DOH) to establish the Health Equity Zones Initiative. The initiative identifies geographically-based health equity zones – places in Washington where community members face significant barriers to health.
The initiative recognizes that those who are the most impacted are the same people who have the best understanding of their community’s strengths and needs and have ideas to improve health in their community. Every two years, DOH is required to submit a report to the legislature (PDF) on the progress of the initiative.
For regular updates on the selected zones and additional processes, visit the HEZ Initiative’s WA Portal site.
Creation of Health Equity Zones
In July 2021, DOH worked with agency and community partners to develop the Health Equity Zones Initiative. The first year emphasized partner engagement and community-centered processes to build a sustainable foundation for the initiative.
DOH supported the process of establishing a Community Advisory Council in 2022 to lead the zone selection process for the initiative. In response to feedback from people involved in the process, DOH also created a Community Workgroup with open membership to encourage more community input on the HEZ Initiative.
In June 2023, the Community Advisory Council met in person to select the first urban and rural health equity zones. In September 2024, the Indigenous Advisory Panel, made up of Tribal Community Representatives from the Community Advisory Council and other Native people from across the state, selected the first Zone for Native Communities. For information on the selected zones, visit the HEZ Initiative’s WA Portal site.
Each of the selected Health Equity Zones is led by a cross-sector group of community members that reflects the diverse makeup of the community. TheseCommunity Advisory Boards lead community efforts to identify health priorities and actions that address these priorities. DOH supports the three zones in identifying funding and other resources that allow community-identified strategies to be implemented.
Evaluation
The Health Equity Zones Initiative uses a participatory action approach to evaluation, in which those involved in the initiative develop the evaluation and use the findings for collective action. This approach centers community knowledge and self-determination, encourages action and systemic change, and embeds the practice of reflection, dialogue, and learning into all aspects of the initiative.
The Health Equity Zones Evaluation Team, comprised of zone partners, Community Advisory Council members, and DOH staff, leads the evaluation of the initiative and documents the impact of community-led decision-making for others to learn from.
Stay Connected
- For more detailed information and ongoing updates on the HEZ Initiative, please visit the Health Equity Zones Initiative site on WA Portal.
- Please contact HealthEquityZones@doh.wa.gov if you have any questions about the Health Equity Zones Initiative or would like to access this information in a language other than English.
- Sign up to receive the monthly Health Equity Zones newsletter.