About the Community Preventive Services Task Force
The Community Preventive Services Task Force (CPSTF) works to improve the health of communities by issuing evidence-based recommendations and findings on public health interventions designed to improve health and safety.
Who We Are
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) established CPSTF in 1996 to develop guidance on which community-based health promotion and disease prevention intervention approaches work and which do not work, based on available scientific evidence.
CPSTF is an independent, nonfederal panel of 15 public health and prevention experts who represent a broad range of scientific, practice, and policy expertise in community prevention services, public health, health promotion, and disease prevention. Members are appointed by the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). CDC’s Community Guide Program provides administrative, scientific, and technical support for the CPSTF.
What We Do
CPSTF provides recommendations and findings on programs, services, and other interventions to protect and improve population health. These recommendations and findings are based on systematic reviews of evidence of effectiveness and economic impact. These findings make up The Community Guide.
CPSTF uses scientifically rigorous methodology used to conduct systematic reviews, oversee and participate in the review process, prioritize topic areas and interventions for review, and work to advance health equity throughout all of their work. CPSTF prepares an annual report to Congress that summarizes their work for the fiscal year, identifies gaps in research, and recommends priority areas for further examination.
CPSTF members in April 2024. Front row (L-R): Sarah Stoddard, PhD, RN, CNP, FAAN, FSAHM; Melissa A. Simon, MD, MPH; Joy Melnikow, MD, MPH; Karen Emmons, PhD; Loel Solomon, PhD, MPP; Richard Hamburg, MPA. Back row (L-R): Thomas E. Kottke, MD, MSPH; Alison Evans Cuellar, PhD; John M. Clymer; Stephen Hargarten, MD, MPH; Wendy Barrington, PhD, MPH.
Why Our Work Matters
CPSTF recommendations compiled in The Community Guide help communities save time and money.
Communities, businesses, the U.S. military, healthcare systems, schools, public health departments, employers, and related groups can rely on The Community Guide when deciding how to best use limited resources to tackle a broad range of health challenges. Communities can skip the step of researching intervention approaches and feel confident about their options, knowing CPSTF recommendations are based on credible, rigorous, systematic reviews that consider all relevant, high-quality evidence. In addition, CPSTF findings identify evidence gaps that help researchers, evaluators, and funding organizations prioritize areas of study.
