Skip to main content Skip to office menu Skip to footer
Capital IconMinnesota Legislature

Office of the Revisor of Statutes

145A.02 Definitions.

Subdivision 1. Applicability. Definitions in this section apply to this chapter.

Subd. 2. Board of health. "Board of health" or "board" means an administrative authority established under section 145A.03 or 145A.07.

Subd. 3. City. "City" means a statutory city or home rule charter city as defined in section 410.015.

Subd. 4. Commissioner. "Commissioner" means the Minnesota commissioner of health.

Subd. 5. Community health board. "Community health board" means a board of health established, operating, and eligible for a subsidy under sections 145A.09 to 145A.13.

Subd. 6. Community health services. "Community health services" means activities designed to protect and promote the health of the general population within a community health service area by emphasizing the prevention of disease, injury, disability, and preventable death through the promotion of effective coordination and use of community resources, and by extending health services into the community. Program categories of community health services include disease prevention and control, emergency medical care, environmental health, family health, health promotion, and home health care.

Subd. 7. Community health service area. "Community health service area" means a city, county, or multicounty area that is organized as a community health board under section 145A.09 and for which a subsidy is received under sections 145A.09 to 145A.13.

Subd. 8. County board. "County board" or "county" means a county board of commissioners as defined in chapter 375.

Subd. 9. Disease prevention and control. "Disease prevention and control" means activities intended to prevent or control communicable diseases. These activities include the coordination or provision of disease surveillance, investigation, reporting, and related counseling, education, screening, immunization, case management and clinical services.

Subd. 10. Emergency medical care. "Emergency medical care" means activities intended to protect the health of persons suffering a medical emergency and to ensure rapid and effective emergency medical treatment. These activities include the coordination or provision of training, cooperation with public safety agencies, communications, life-support transportation as defined under section 144E.16, public information and involvement, and system management.

Subd. 11. Environmental health. "Environmental health" means activities intended to achieve an environment conducive to human health, comfort, safety, and well-being. These activities include the coordination or provision of education, regulation, and consultation related to food protection, hazardous substances and product safety, water supply sanitation, waste disposal, environmental pollution control, occupational health and safety, public health nuisance control, institutional sanitation, recreational sanitation including swimming pool sanitation and safety, and housing code enforcement for health and safety purposes.

Subd. 12. Family health. "Family health" means activities intended to promote optimum health outcomes as related to human reproduction and child growth and development. These activities include the coordination or provision of education, counseling, screening, clinical services, school health services, nutrition services, family planning services as defined in section 145.925, and other interventions directed at improving family health. Family health services must not include arrangements, referrals, or counseling for, or provision of, voluntary termination of pregnancy.

Subd. 13. Health promotion. "Health promotion" means activities intended to reduce the prevalence of risk conditions or behaviors of individuals or communities for the purpose of preventing chronic disease and effecting other definable advances in health status. These activities include the coordination or provision of community organization, regulation, targeted screening and education, as well as informational and other scientifically supported interventions to foster health by affecting related conditions and behaviors.

Subd. 14. Home health care. "Home health care" means activities intended to reduce the ill effects and complications of existing disease and to provide suitable alternatives to inpatient care in a health facility. These activities include the coordination or provision of health assessment, nursing care, education, counseling, nutrition services, delegated medical and ancillary services, case management, referral and follow-up.

Subd. 15. Medical consultant. "Medical consultant" means a physician licensed to practice medicine in Minnesota who is working under a written agreement with, employed by, or on contract with a board of health to provide advice and information, to authorize medical procedures through standing orders, and to assist a board of health and its staff in coordinating their activities with local medical practitioners and health care institutions.

Subd. 16. Population. "Population" means the total number of residents of the state or any city or county as established by the last federal census, by a special census taken by the United States Bureau of the Census, by the state demographer under section 4A.02, or by an estimate of city population prepared by the metropolitan council, whichever is the most recent as to the stated date of count or estimate.

Subd. 17. Public health nuisance. "Public health nuisance" means any activity or failure to act that adversely affects the public health.

Subd. 18. Public health nurse. "Public health nurse" means a person who is licensed as a registered nurse by the Minnesota board of nursing under sections 148.171 to 148.285 and who meets the voluntary registration requirements established by the board of nursing.

HIST: 1987 c 309 s 2; 1989 c 194 s 2; 1991 c 345 art 2 s 43; 1997 c 199 s 14

Official Publication of the State of Minnesota
Revisor of Statutes