Seventy-six percent of state and local public health leaders interviewed for a new study said they were threatened or harassed during the COVID-19 pandemic. The research, led by The Ohio State University and published in the American Journal of Public Health, is based on interviews with 109 leaders from 18 geographically and politically diverse states. The accounts included an FBI arrest of a person making ongoing, credible death threats.
The findings reach beyond one profession. The same local health departments that faced this backlash now run measles responses, vaccine clinics, restaurant inspections, and foodborne illness investigations. Lead author Marian Moser Jones said many of the leaders interviewed have retired early or left the field.
Two Kinds of Backlash
The researchers sorted hostility into two categories. "Extraordinary" backlash covered threats and harassment and was reported by 76% of participants. "Undermining" backlash, reported by 47%, included flooding offices with data requests, repeatedly demanding changes to pandemic guidance, and publicly attacking officials' qualifications, CIDRAP reported.
"This is true hostility. Threats of violence," Moser Jones said in an Ohio State news release, distinguishing it from ordinary disagreement over masks or vaccines. In one case described to CIDRAP, a person confronted an official in a grocery store and revealed knowledge of her children's names and when they played in their backyard; the children's schedules and other personal details later appeared on social media, a practice known as doxxing.
Women reported more backlash than men: 61% of female officials described extraordinary backlash, compared with 44% of men. Moser Jones told CIDRAP that multiple health officers had to move across the country for safety reasons.
The study has important limits. It relied on interviews with local and state leaders, mostly from suburban and rural areas, so its percentages describe this group rather than every U.S. health official. The project was funded by the Commonwealth Fund, the Mellon Foundation, and the National Science Foundation.
Earlier Data Show the Same Strain
Earlier research points the same way. A survey of local health departments documented at least 1,499 harassment incidents at 335 departments between March 2020 and January 2021, along with 222 departures of public health officials, CIDRAP reported at the time. Threats to individual or family safety affected 9% to 12% of officials in that analysis.
When experienced leaders leave under pressure, newer staff inherit the next emergency with less institutional memory. The danger has not disappeared in Ohio, where the research team is based. MedicalDaily recently reported that a man was charged with assault after lunging at Dr. Amy Acton, the state's former health director, at the Canfield Fair.
What Could Help, and What Residents Can Do
The researchers identified strategies that sometimes lowered tensions. In smaller communities, officials often had deep ties to residents and knew the people making threats, which sometimes helped defuse conflicts. Some officials had supportive local police who took threats seriously.
Moser Jones told CIDRAP she believes both legislation, such as laws against doxxing, and greater public awareness could help protect public health officials. "We need to make it visible and understandable to the public how vital public health is," she said.
Those most affected are health officers in small departments with little security support, women in visible leadership roles, and residents whose local agencies lose experienced staff before the next outbreak.
Residents can help keep the system working. Rely on your city or county health department for outbreak alerts, vaccine clinics, and food safety notices rather than social media claims. Voice disagreement at public board of health meetings, and report threats or doxxing to law enforcement. Officials who are targeted should save messages and notify their agency's security or legal staff.
Key Questions Answered
What did the study find? Of 109 public health leaders interviewed, 76% reported threats or harassment, and 47% reported efforts to undermine their work.
Where did the officials work? They came from 18 geographically and politically diverse states, mostly in suburban and rural areas, and included local and state leaders.
What counts as undermining backlash? Researchers included flooding offices with data requests, repeated demands to change guidance, and public attacks on officials' qualifications.
Were women affected more? Yes. In the study, 61% of female officials reported extraordinary backlash, compared with 44% of men.
What protections have been suggested? The lead author said laws against doxxing and greater public understanding of public health could help. Community relationships also helped some officials.
Is the 76% figure national? No. It reflects the 109 leaders interviewed, not a nationally representative sample.
Published by Medicaldaily.com
