Agenda Setting in Public Health Policy

Agenda setting is the issue-sorting phase in the public policy process, during which some concerns rise to the attention of policy makers while others remain neglected. Power - who holds it and how it is exercised - is a central concern in health agenda-setting research. The most influential model of the agenda-setting process postulates that issues rise to the attention of policy makers when problems, solutions, and political developments converge, creating windows of opportunity. This model challenges assumptions that health issues rise onto policy agendas solely through rational deliberation and careful consideration of evidence.