Former Mayor Sheila Dixon on Wednesday released a detailed public health plan, targeting drug addiction, HIV and lead poisoning among other issues.
The eight-page platform calls for expanding home visits for teen moms; widely distributing the anti-overdose drug naloxone; and hiring more lead paint inspectors.
"As I said in my four-point crime plan, we cannot combat crime effectively without acknowledging the corresponding public health crisis," Dixon said in a statement. "Many of Baltimore's health challenges have origins in the economic and racial inequities of our city. I am determined that the city where modern medicine was born will also have the best health indicators in the nation."
Dixon's plan calls for raising the smoking age in Baltimore from 18 to 21; ending HIV in Baltimore by 2030; and increasing funding for senior programs and services.
She is among 13 Democrats running to become the next mayor of Baltimore. Dixon, who has already released plans about fighting crime and growing jobs, is the first in the field to release a specific plan about public health.
lbroadwater@baltsun.com
Twitter.com/lukebroadwater
