Where to Find a Health Department Inspection

All health departments are required to allow public access to their restaurant, grocery store and other inspection reports for any restaurant, hotel, grocery store, or facility they inspect. You can access them by a number of methods:

1 – Online: We find more and more health departments putting their inspection results on the Web. So you may be able to access records through the health department web site or government web pages. Check out our video link to a news story that proves how valuable online inspections can be to the public.

To find out if your reports are available online, do a Google search. Suggest something like “Health Department Inspections Denver Colorado” (substitute your city, county or state name, of course) and see if you find a link for your location. If you find a web site, search for any links to something like “online inspections” or “health department reports.” If your area does not have them up online, you may be told how to access them on their web site.

2 – In the newspapers: In some communities, health department reports are printed in the newspapers. Depending on your community or local paper, you may be able to read, on a weekly (or other) basis, what the health department has found at the local food establishments.


3 – At the office: In almost all cases, a visit to the health department will give you the information you want. Calling ahead might be a good idea, just to make sure you’re going to the correct office, and also to see if you need to schedule a time to review records.

4 – At the restaurant: Depending on how comfortable you feel about broaching the subject, you may be able to ask the facility itself for a copy of its latest health department report or score. Some areas require that the score or grade be posted in the window, which is very convenient for the public. This may be an uncomfortable option for you; in addition, the location itself is not required to give the report to the general public, even if asked.

You won't believe what some health inspectors see during their inspections!

If you want to learn more about how to read a health department inspection, click here.

What should you do if you see food safety mistakes? Click here.

To check out Food-Safety-and-You.com's home page, click here.