DHHS News

First human case of West Nile virus confirmed in Utah for 2022

Salt Lake City—Public health officials confirmed the first positive human case of West Nile virus (WNV) in Weber Morgan Health District about a month after WNV was found in mosquitoes...
Last updated: November 15, 2022

CDC recommends use of bivalent COVID-19 booster

(Salt Lake City, UT) – The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued recommendations for use of the Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 bivalent vaccines to help protect Americans from...
Last updated: November 15, 2022

Take protective measures against mosquito bites

Salt Lake City—Even though no human cases of West Nile virus in Utah have been reported to date, the Utah Department of Health and Human Services says the virus has...
Last updated: November 15, 2022

988 FAQ

What is 988? On July 16, 2022, the nation will transition to an easy-to-remember three-digit suicide prevention and mental health crisis lifeline—988—that will route all callers, texters, and chatters to the...
Last updated: July 21, 2022

How Communities Respond After a Suicide Matters

A Safe Community Response to a Suicide Death Can Prevent Future Crises and Promote Healing Trigger warning: this article mentions suicide. If you or a loved one is experiencing a mental...
Last updated: November 7, 2022

FDA advisory committee recommends authorization of pediatric COVID-19 vaccine

(Salt Lake City, UT) – Today’s vote by the FDA’s independent advisory committee recommending emergency use authorization of Pfizer’s pediatric COVID-19 vaccine for children ages 5-11 is a significant step...
Last updated: October 26, 2021

Media contacts

For media inquiries, contact our on-call Public Information Officers (PIO) at:

Joe Dougherty, director of communications

News releases and media statements

Spanish news releases and media statements

We strive to provide all news releases and media statements in Spanish. Our language access team can provide translation services by contacting them at languageaccess.utah.gov.  

Our graphic and writing standards

Our agency name is the Utah Department of Health and Human Services. Use DHHS if an acronym is needed. 

  • DHHS graphic standards—This guide outlines how to use our logo, colors, fonts, and imagery in printed and electronic media. 
  • DHHS logos 
  • DHHS writing style guide—This guide creates clear and consistent language and tone across all written products, both internal and external to our agency.

Media guides and safe messaging

How we talk about suicide, mental health, and traumatic events matters. When we follow safe messaging guidelines, we contribute to a hopeful narrative about triumph over adversity. We communicate that support is available. Safe messaging promotes resiliency, encourages help-seeking, publicizes prevention successes, and encourages actions to help prevent suicide. 

When writing about suicide, mental health, or traumatic events follow safe messaging guidelines. Here are some of our favorite resources.