CPSTF Priority Topics
What are the CPSTF priority topics for 2020-2025?
At their June 2020 meeting, the Community Preventive Services Task Force (CPSTF) selected a set of nine priority topics to guide their systematic reviews on population health interventions for the next five years (2020-2025). The priority topics are as follows:
- Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention
- Injury Prevention
- Mental Health
- Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Obesity
- Preparedness and Response
- Social Determinants of Health
- Substance Use
- Tobacco Use
- Violence Prevention
How were these priority topics selected?
The CSPTF used a data-driven process to select priority topics (Lansky et al. 2022). They began with consideration of all the Healthy People 2020 topics. They engaged multiple stakeholders to provide input on priority topics, including the general public, CDC leadership, and CPSTF Liaison organizations (representing state and local public health departments, the U.S. Armed Forces, federal agencies, professional associations, and national organizations). For each topic, CPSTF applied several criteria such as burden, disparities, impact, and balance across topics and their expertise to narrow the list. They engaged in deliberation and voting to select the set of priority topics.
How will CPSTF use these priorities to guide their work?
After identifying a set of priority topics, CPSTF develops a portfolio of community-based intervention approaches within these topic areas and prioritizes them for systematic review. Because many topics are broad, CPSTF may first determine key subtopics. For example, in 2015 a priority topic was Health Equity; CPSTF determined subtopics of education and housing, and then developed a portfolio of intervention approaches to pursue for each subtopic.