Tag: DE Division of Public Health

DPH REPORTS SUCCESSFUL DEA PRESCRIPTION DRUG TAKE-BACK DAY FOR DELAWARE 

DOVER (May 9, 2023) - The Delaware Division of Public Health (DPH) recently held its 24th Prescription Drug Take-Back Day event. Organized nationally by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Prescription Drug Take-Back Day is operated locally by DPH. The twice-a-year event (April and October) aims to reduce the risk of prescription medications being diverted for misuse and has resulted in 114,470 pounds of medication being collected in Delaware since 2010. Properly discarding unused medications […]

05/10/2023 11

Events

Home visit program supports Delaware’s new mothers

GEORGETOWN, Del. (AP) — When Dina Archila Cerna found out she was pregnant, she said she had so much fear about having her first child that she hid her pregnancy from her own mother – the entire time she was pregnant. Living in southern Delaware as an immigrant, she was 18 hours away from her closest relatives. She was going to become a mother for the first time, and her […]

11/21/2022 56

Events

Delaware to include fentanyl test strips in Narcan kits

DOVER, Del. (AP) — Delaware health officials say they will soon include fentanyl test strips in Narcan kits distributed to the public. The Division of Public Health's Office of Health Crisis Response says the effort is aimed at preventing accidental overdoses due to fentanyl consumption. Officials say fentanyl is now the leading cause of drug overdose deaths in Delaware and it is found in more than 80% of fatal overdoses. […]

08/30/2022 42

Events

Delaware’s public health director to step down in June

DOVER, Del. (AP) — Delaware's top public health official has announced that she will leave her job next month. The News Journal reports that Dr. Karyl Rattay will step down on June 30 after leading the Division of Public Health for 13 years. Rattay has led the state's response to the COVID-19 pandemic and is the country's longest-serving public health director. It's unclear where she will work next and who […]

05/16/2022 36

Events

Delaware DPH launches text alerts for COVID-positive people

DOVER, Del. (AP) — The Delaware Division of Public Health has launched a text messaging initiative to let people know when they've tested positive for COVID-19. The division said Friday that virus-positive individuals will get a text and be provided with initial isolation recommendations online before receiving a call from the division's Contact Tracing Team. A pilot program to test the service on a small number of people started on […]

03/14/2022 32

Events

Delaware still has thousands of vaccine doses available

DOVER, Del. (AP) — Health officials in the state of Delaware say there is still a plentiful supply of COVID-19 vaccines. The Delaware State News reported Sunday that thousands of doses are still available in the Delaware Division of Public Health warehouse. And some are expiring in the coming weeks and months. State health officials said that nearly 1.7 million coronavirus vaccine doses have been administered in the state. DPH […]

03/14/2022 35

Events

Delaware health officials close unregulated tattoo parlor

MILLSBORO, Del. (AP) — Delaware health officials say they have shut down an unregulated tattoo parlor in Millsboro. The Delaware Division of Public Health said in a news release Friday that its staff issued a cease and desist order to Miguel Angel Garcia, of 102 Nicoles Court in Millsboro, for conducting tattooing activities out of his home without a required body art establishment permit. The DPH said the business kept […]

12/13/2021 72

Events

DE Public Schools report less than 300 in-person COVID cases

DOVER, Del. (AP) — Delaware's K-12 public schools are continuing to report less than 300 COVID-19 cases that are deemed as being in-person and contagious. The Delaware State News reported this week that the numbers remained under the 300 mark for the fifth consecutive week. The data was released Wednesday by the Delaware Division of Public Health. The agency said there were 298 cases for students. Delaware has recorded a […]

11/29/2021 48

News

Delaware extending school mask mandate until February

DOVER, Del. (AP) — Delaware officials are extending the state's mask mandate for public and private schools into the new year. Democratic Gov. John Carney announced Wednesday that the requirement will be extended until Feb. 8. The emergency masking regulation that's currently in effect is set to expire on Dec. 10, with an option to extend the order by 60 days. Officials say the extension will be formalized later this […]

11/12/2021 30