Specifications for Effective Health Care (EHC) Consumer Publications

AHRQ Publishing and Communications Guideline

Page Size

6 x 9 inches.

Margins

3/8 of an inch on all four sides (.375 inches).

Ink Colors

All EHC publications are branded with PMS 7411 (orange) and PMS 295 (blue). Use either one or both of these colors on each publication to tie into the "family" of EHC publications. You may also use the additional colors of PMS 194 (red), PMS 370 (green), and black. Convert all PMS colors to full process for printing by the Government Printing Office (GPO).

Bleed

Inks bleed off all four edges.

Sample products

Design Elements

Each of the EHC consumer publications have the same basic design and font treatments. Photos, illustrations, and charts will vary from piece to piece, but overall each product should have the same look and feel and be recognizable as belonging to the EHC family.

EHC banner: The EHC banner should be used at the top of the front cover at a horizontal size of 3.5 inches. The banner should be flush left at the 3/8 inch margin. The banner must not be stretched, cropped, or modified. The banner should be white on a blue (PMS 295) background.

EHC title: The publication title prints in white on a 58-percent screen of PMS 370 (green) background for English and on a 100 percent PMS 194 (red) background for Spanish. The title font is Myriad Pro Bold, and the font size is 26 point with 26-point leading. The subtitle is also Myriad Pro Bold, and the size is 18 point with 20-point leading. See below for samples.

Sample banner

Sample banner and title

Use a 58-percent screen of PMS 370 (green) for English and 100 percent PMS 194 (red) for Spanish language covers.

EHC swoosh: The EHC swoosh appears at the bottom of the front cover and bleeds off the bottom and right edge. The color of the swoosh is a 6 percent screen of PMS 7411 (orange) and an opacity setting of 30 percent. See page 1 for sample covers. The swoosh can also be used as a design element on the interior pages. The swoosh can be full color, one Pantone color, or a screen of a Pantone color. The swoosh can be large or small, and if desired, only a portion of the swoosh can be used for design purposes. See below for sample swooshes and page 1 for sample designs using the swoosh. Sample swooshes and page 1 for sample designs using the swooshes are shown below.

Full-color swoosh and one-color swoosh

Photos

Photos may be used where appropriate and should relate to the publication topic. Photos must appeal to a diverse audience and represent racial and ethnic diversity. Spanish-language publications must have photos of Hispanic people. Each cover should have the same photo treatment. Photos must be full process color. All photos must be purchased royalty free.

Columns

Each page should have one column of text. The only exceptions to this are charts, tables, and figures that can have more than one column due to their complexity. Call outs and side bars if used as a design elements can extend into or interrupt the one column of text.

Page Numbers

Page numbers should appear at the bottom left and right margins of each page. The numbers should be flush left with the margin on even numbered pages and flush right with the margin on odd numbered pages. The page numbers print in 11-point Myriad Roman. Covers are not numbered.

Fonts

Use the fonts below. If the subject matter is geared toward older people, larger font sizes should be used. Due to their complexity, charts and graphs can have text smaller than 11- or 12-point, but no smaller than 8 point.

• Front cover title: 26-point Myriad Pro Bold.
• Front cover subtitle: 18-point Myriad Pro Bold.
• Body text: 13-point Minion Pro with 16-point leading.
• Level 1 heads: 16-point Myriad Pro Bold. (White type in green or red bar)
• Level 2 heads: 14-point Myriad Pro Bold.
• Run-in heads: 13-point Minion Pro Bold.

Bullets

Square.

Hyphenation

Should be turned off.

Sample fonts and sizes

Branding

HHS and AHRQ branding logos must be placed at the bottom of the front cover (see below). The HHS/AHRQ logos must not be stretched, cropped, or modified in any way. The branding logo should fit proportionally with the design elements on the front cover. Use PMS 295 (blue) for color. A sample is shown below.

Front cover branding logo

AHRQ logo, publication number, and date must appear at bottom of back cover.

All AHRQ publications being printed for distribution from the AHRQ Clearinghouse must bear an AHRQ publication number and a date. These items normally appear at the bottom of cover four or on the last page of fact sheets and marketing materials. The AHRQ logo and publication number may be flush right or left depending on the design. The AHRQ editor will provide publication numbers to contractors. A sample of a flush left back cover is shown below.

Back cover logo

Submitting Files to AHRQ

For draft materials going to AHRQ for content review or layout, provide Word® 2007 documents (do not provide PDF files).

For print-ready proofs to go to the Government Printing Office (GPO), provide AHRQ source files in Quark Xpress or Adobe InDesign. Include fonts, logos, and any picture files (TIFs, EPS, or JPGs) with the source files.

In addition to the electronic files, a full-size color printout of each page including bleeds and crop marks and a folding dummy are required.

GPO also requires that a completed Form 952 accompany print files. This form is downloadable from the GPO Web site at http://www.gpo.gov

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