Organizations & Committees

Many government agencies and academic, for-profit and non-profit organizations have health literacy programs, participate in committees, and contribute to plans and reports. This page links to the health literacy web resources of federal agencies; the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, & Medicine; and international organizations.

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Health Literacy Web Pages

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and its agencies contribute to the science and practice of health literacy improvement. Learn what agencies are doing about health literacy.

• Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality: Health Literacy
• Food and Drug Administration Strategic Plan for Risk Communication
• FDA Risk Communication Advisory Committee (Food & Drug Administration 2011)
• Health Resources and Services Administration: Health Literacy
• Indian Health Service: Welcome to Healthcare Communications
• National Institutes of Health: Clear Communication: A NIH Health Literacy Initiative
• Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, HHS: Health Literacy Improvement
• Office of Minority Health Cultural and Linguistic Competency

Other Federal Agencies’ Health Literacy Activities

The National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA), U.S. Department of Agriculture, sponsors nutrition, health, and wellness programs and is a partner with the Cooperative Extension System and its National Framework for Health and Wellness. NIFA distributes federal funds for state and local programs and provides national leadership in food and agricultural sciences.

International Health Literacy Web Pages

Find out about health literacy activities in countries other than the U.S.

• Canada, The Center for Literacy
• Canadian Public Health Association Health Literacy Portal
• England, Health Literacy Group
• Health Literacy New Zealand
• Ireland National Adult Literacy Agency
• Shanghai Declaration on promoting health in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development

The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, & Medicine

The Roundtable on Health Literacy brings together leaders from academia, industry, government, foundations and associations, and representatives of patient and consumer interests to improve health literacy. The Roundtable produces reports about many health literacy issues and posts them on the IOM’s web site.

The Roundtable on Value & Science-Driven Health Care draws on insights and leadership from the scientific, clinical, commercial, voluntary, and public sectors to improve the communication and understanding of evidence important to decision-making in health care.  The Roundtable issues reports on patient engagement and other issues related to health literacy.