Environmental Health Workforce Act of 2023

The Environmental Health Workforce Act of 2023 addresses critical staffing shortages in environmental health by requiring the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to develop model standards for credentialing workers and create a national workforce development plan. It directs HHS to provide states with technical assistance for credentialing, establish performance measures for workforce programs, and submit a comprehensive plan to Congress within two years. The bill also mandates a report examining best practices in six states (three with and three without credentialing requirements) to identify effective training and certification approaches for public health workers who investigate environmental hazards. Additionally, it expands federal student loan forgiveness eligibility to include full-time environmental health workers meeting state credentialing standards. This legislation directly affects state/local health agencies, Tribal programs, and environmental health workers across the U.S.