Journal profile · Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Public Health
ISSN 0033-3506 · eISSN 1476-5616 · Elsevier · ENGLAND · Bimonthly · Founded 1888
Public Health: CAS Zone 3 · Medicine (2025 upgraded edition); impact factor 3.38; hybrid open access; APC about USD 3,130; median 115 days to acceptance (104 articles, last 24 months); community-reported acceptance: easy; 493 articles in 2025; indexed in SCIE, SSCI and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Public Health is published by Elsevier and is in Zone 3 of Medicine in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Human auditory perception and evaluation, Primary Care and Health Outcomes and Public Health Policies and Education, together about 24% of its articles. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
In continuous publication since 1888 Public Health is an international, multidisciplinary peer-reviewed journal. The journal aims to publish international articles focused on all aspects of the science and philosophy of; public health, public health services and public health systems, seeking to challenge the status quo to improve the health and care of populations or communities.The journal will publish robust and ethically sound articles of any study type whereby the focus is consistent with our aim. This includes but is not limited to:Public health theory, models and frameworks Epidemiology - social and political Need or impact assessments with a strategic/population level focus Effectiveness, management and re-design of health and social care services/support, and wider determinant services such as education, welfare, employment services to improve public healthHealth Protection including control of communicable diseases Health promotion and disease preventionDevelopment of public health programmes or interventionsPublic health governance, audit and qualityPublic health law and ethicsPublic health policy and comparisonsCapacity in public health systems and workforceThe target market of the journal is researchers, practitioners, and policymakers who are engaged in public health policy and programmes, public health services and public health systems.
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Editor-in-chief Andrew LeePublisher website
Editorial board by country: none in mainland China; most named United Kingdom 22, United States 5, Australia 3, Türkiye 2, Hong Kong, China 1 (37 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Human auditory perception and evaluationEngineering9%
- Primary Care and Health OutcomesHealth Professions7.9%
- Public Health Policies and EducationHealth Professions7.1%
- Diverse Scientific and Economic StudiesEconomics, Econometrics and Finance7%
- Educational Robotics and EngineeringComputer Science5.4%
- Global Public Health Policies and EpidemiologyBusiness, Management and Accounting4.5%
- Legal case studies and regulationsSocial Sciences4.5%
- School Health and Nursing EducationHealth Professions4.5%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Medicine Zone 3
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Medicine | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Public, Environmental & Occupational Health | Zone 3 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Medicine Zone 3
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Medicine | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Public, Environmental & Occupational Health | Zone 3 |
Top journal: noReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Medicine Zone 3
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Medicine | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Public, Environmental & Occupational Health | Zone 3 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
Database indexing
SCIESSCIScopusLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
Editions, and major and minor categories, are shown separately and never merged into one zone; check which edition your institution uses before you submit or report.
Metrics
Impact metrics and publication volume
Impact
- Impact factor
- 3.38LetPub ·
- Impact factor (publisher)
- 3.5Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 5.1LetPub ·
- CiteScore (publisher)
- 5.1Publisher website ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 1.09LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 1.15LetPub ·
- h-index
- 66LetPub ·
- h-index
- 142OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 4,148OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 3.38OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 2.9%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 47.37%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 452LetPub ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 26,857 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 316 | 167 | 114 |
| 2025 | 493 | 295 | 1,291 |
| 2024 | 445 | 243 | 2,836 |
| 2023 | 387 | 206 | 4,553 |
| 2022 | 292 | 173 | 4,124 |
| 2021 | 390 | 243 | 9,099 |
Sources count differently and were observed at different times, so each source's own value is kept; "publisher" marks figures from the journal's website.
Review & acceptance
Review time and acceptance
Review time from article dates manuscript dates registered with PubMed · to
115 daysMedian, submission to acceptance · P25–P75 84 days – 160 days
- Acceptance to online
- median 11 days (104 articles)
- Submission to online
- median 132 days
- Sample
- 104 articles with submission and acceptance dates (965 in the window); the latest was accepted on
Only articles that were accepted and published are counted, not the time spent on rejected manuscripts, so this usually runs longer than a publisher's "time to first decision".
Other sources
- Average review time (community reports)
- 3–8 weeksLetPub ·
- Average acceptance (community reports)
- EasyLetPub ·
- Submission to first decision
- 9 daysPublisher website ·
- First decision after review
- 103 daysPublisher website ·
- Submission to acceptance
- 167 daysPublisher website ·
- Acceptance to publication
- 13 daysPublisher website ·
- Peer review
- Double anonymous peer reviewPublisher website
Community reports come from authors' own submissions (confidence 0.5) and are not a promise from the journal; for publisher figures, the journal's own definitions apply.
Fees & open access
APC and open-access policy
Hybrid open accessLetPub
A subscription journal in which authors can pay to publish their article open access.
| Source | APC | Fee waiver | License | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| OpenAlex | USD 3,130 / EUR 2,930 / GBP 2,510 / JPY 388,210 | — | — | |
| Publisher website | USD 3,310 | — | — |
A hybrid journal charges the APC only when the author chooses open access; publishing under the subscription model is usually free.
The journal's website is authoritative for fees; sources were observed at different times and each keeps its own value, without averaging.
Submission
Article types and submission policies (journal website)
Open calls for papers2, by deadline
- Integrated Care and Public HealthDeadline
- VSI: Addiction & technologyDeadline
Article types accepted7, with length limits
- commentaryArticle TypeWord LengthTables/figuresReferencesExternally peer reviewed?Original ResearchUp to 3000Up to 550YesReview ArticleUp to 3000Up to 5100YesShort Commun…main text ≤ 3,000 words
- letters to the editorReaders are encouraged to submit Letters to the Editors that respond to articles in Public Health published in the last 12 months.Authors will be given the oppo…main text ≤ 750 words
- narrative reviewPublic Health will consider Narrative Review papers. Whilst no formal guidelines for such reviews exist, authors should be very clear in what criteria they have…main text ≤ 3,000 words · references ≤ 100
- opinionArticle TypeWord LengthTables/figuresReferencesExternally peer reviewed?Original ResearchUp to 3000Up to 550YesReview ArticleUp to 3000Up to 5100YesShort Commun…Length not stated
- protocolArticle TypeWord LengthTables/figuresReferencesExternally peer reviewed?Original ResearchUp to 3000Up to 550YesReview ArticleUp to 3000Up to 5100YesShort Commun…Length not stated
- reviewness of undertaking a narrative review. Review papers should not exceed 3000 words. Reviews can include up to five tables/figures and up to 10main text ≤ 3,000 words · references ≤ 100
- short communicationot warrant publication as a full paper. Short communications should be no more than 1500 words in length and provide adequate information to allow for themain text ≤ 1,500 words · references ≤ 10
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteAI use, Authorship, Conflicts of interest, License & copyright, Open access, Peer review, Plagiarism, Preprints
- AI use Declaration of Generative AI in scientific writing
The below guidance only refers to the writing process, and not to the use of AI tools to analyse and draw insights from data as part of the research process.Where authors use generative artificial intelligence (AI) and AI-assisted technologies in the writing process, authors should only use these technologies to improve readability and language. Applying the technology should be done with human ov…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Authorship Authorship
All authors should have made substantial contributions to all of the following: (1) the conception and design of the study, or acquisition of data, or analysis and interpretation of data, (2) drafting the article or revising it critically for important intellectual content, (3) final approval of the version to be submitted.Changes to authorshipAuthors are expected to carefully consider the list an…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Conflicts of interest Disclosure Instructions
Authors must disclose the use of generative AI and AI-assisted technologies in the writing process by adding a statement at the end of their manuscript in the core manuscript file, before the References list. The statement should be placed in a new section entitled 'Declaration of Generative AI and AI-assisted technologies in the writing process'.Statement: During the preparation of this work the …
Source ↗Publisher website ·- License & copyright Copyright
Upon acceptance of an article, authors will be asked to complete a 'Journal Publishing Agreement' (see more information on this). An e-mail will be sent to the corresponding author confirming receipt of the manuscript together with a 'Journal Publishing Agreement' form or a link to the online version of this agreement.Subscribers may reproduce tables of contents or prepare lists of articles includ…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Open access Open Access
Article Publishing Charge (APC): USD 3,310 (excluding taxes). The amount you pay may be reduced during submission if applicable.Review this journal’s open access policy.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Peer review Peer Review
This journal uses double-blind review, which means the identities of the authors are concealed from the reviewers, and vice versa. The main body of the paper (including the references, figures, tables and any acknowledgements) should not include any identifying information, such as the authors' names or affiliations.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Plagiarism Plagiarism
Submission of an article implies that the work described has not been published previously (except in the form of an abstract, a published lecture or academic thesis, see 'Multiple, redundant or concurrent publication' for more information), that it is not under consideration for publication elsewhere, that its publication is approved by all authors and tacitly or explicitly by the responsible aut…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Preprints Preprints
Please note that preprints can be shared anywhere at any time, in line with Elsevier's sharing policy. Sharing your preprints e.g. on a preprint server will not count as prior publication (see 'Multiple, redundant or concurrent publication' for more information).
Source ↗Publisher website ·
Excerpts are quoted from the journal's website; "model summary" lines are written by Workers AI and checked against the text. The journal's website is authoritative.
Profile
Publication details and official links
- Publisher
- Elsevier
- Country or region
- ENGLAND
- Language
- English
- Frequency
- Bimonthly
- Founded
- 1888
- ISSN
- 0033-3506
- Electronic ISSN
- 1476-5616
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗OpenAlex
- Submission system ↗Publisher website
- Author guidelines ↗LetPub
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Public Health
What CAS zone is Public Health in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Public Health is in Zone 3 of Medicine, and in Zone 3 of the minor category Public, Environmental & Occupational Health. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 3 of Medicine. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of Public Health?
The latest impact factor listed by LetPub is 3.38; CiteScore 5.1, h-index 142.
How long does peer review take at Public Health?
Based on the dates recorded on 104 articles published between October 2024 and October 2026 (the last 24 months), the median time from submission to acceptance is 115 days (interquartile range 84–160 days); authors report an average review time of 3–8 weeks; the community-reported acceptance is “Easy”. Article statistics cover accepted papers only, publisher figures follow the journal's own definitions, and community reports come from authors' own submissions; none is a promise from the journal.
Where are the editorial board members of Public Health based?
Of the 37 board members whose country the journal's board page names, none are in mainland China; the countries named most often are United Kingdom (22), United States (5) and Australia (3). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index Public Health?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Public Health is indexed in SCIE, SSCI and Scopus.
Is Public Health open access, and what is the APC?
Public Health is a hybrid journal. For open-access publication: APC about USD 3,130.
Sources and updates
The facts on this page come from LetPub, Publisher website, OpenAlex; every figure is tagged with its source and the date it was observed, and conflicting values are kept per source. LetPub source page: view ↗ (archived 2026-08-24). Last updated: .