Dec. 30, 2025. Reno/Sparks, Nev. – Northern Nevada Public Health (NNPH) – Environmental Health Services (EHS) plans to introduce a pilot program in 2026 that will emphasize announced annual inspections rather than unannounced.
This project, which was recommended by an independent evaluation of NNPH’s Environmental Health Services Division, is designed to strengthen public health protections by improving inspection consistency, efficiency, and risk prevention across regulated facilities.
While still in the planning stages, the pilot project will apply to select NNPH permit holders, including:
- Restaurants and other food businesses that do more complex cooking/handling processes (risk category 3)
- Public pools and spas
- Tattoo and body piercing establishments
- Hotels/motels
- Additional facility types to be determined
Announced annual inspections will not apply to all NNPH permit holders. Unannounced inspections will still occur for re-inspections, complaint investigations, suspected health hazards and other circumstances where immediate response is necessary to protect the community.
Launch dates and operational details are still being determined.
The decision follows an independent evaluation of NNPH’s Environmental Health Services Division, which recommended announced inspections as a best practice to improve consistency, foster collaboration and promote effective public health interventions.
“Announced inspections are about improving how we prevent problems before they happen,” said Dr. Chad Kingsley, District Health Officer for NNPH. “This pilot program is about listening and working together. By doing announced inspections, we can create a more collaborative environment, while maintaining our top priority and commitment to the community, which is keeping the public safe.”
Benefits for food safety
- Announced annual inspections allow operators to ensure trained staff are present, critical records are available, and food safety systems are operating as designed
- Inspectors can better assess if the food establishment has the capability and capacity to properly practice safe food handling
- A more thorough, consistent, and educational inspection process strengthens prevention of foodborne illness and other health risks by emphasizing long-term, system-based controls rather than one-time corrections
Research cited in the evaluation shows that announced inspections can encourage active managerial control by reducing a “gotcha” mentality and shifting inspections toward prevention and continuous improvement.
NNPH will evaluate the program’s effectiveness, including public health outcomes, and will share the results publicly to support transparency and continuous improvement.
For more information about the NNPH EHS, visit our website. To see restaurant inspections in Washoe County, download the Washoe Eats app.
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Northern Nevada Public Health (NNPH) is nationally accredited by the Public Health Accreditation Board and has jurisdiction over all public health matters in Reno, Sparks, and Washoe County through the policy-making District Board of Health. NNPH consists of five divisions: Administrative Health Services, Air Quality Management, Community and Clinical Health Services, Environmental Health Services and Population Health Preparedness. More info can be found here.