AP Stylebook updates at ACES
The 2026 ACES: The Society for Editing conference took place in Atlanta last week. This annual event brings together hundreds of editors of all kinds, offering three fantastic days of networking, brushing up on best practices, and learning new skills—along with pun slams and a spelling bee.
The conference is also where the AP Stylebook editors announce their yearly changes and updates to the stylebook. This is always a fun event for us style nerds, but any updates announced also reflect current events, usage changes, and other food for thought.
This year’s AP style session was a big one in the editing world: The editors finally decided it was time to make the change from health care as two words to healthcare, one word. I say “finally” because editors have been asking for this change, vocally, for several years now. The AP editors’ reasons for staying put on health care were valid, but they acknowledged that common usage has settled on using the term as one word and that it was time for the update.
Believe me when I tell you—people in the room cheered.
Associate Editor Julia Wilson was able to attend the conference this year. Reflecting on her experience there, she said, “As a word nerd, it was fantastic to hear the enthusiastic cheers of fellow word nerds in the room when the healthcare change was announced. It’s those little, seemingly mundane changes that actually carry tremendous weight in this industry, and I felt like I was a part of history to be one of the first to know!”
The healthcare change was the biggest update, but the AP editors announced several others, including how to handle sponsor names, navigating accident vs. crash in terms of implied liability, and moving its “Native Americans, Indigenous people/peoples” guidance to its own entry.
For a full list of this year’s updates, check out the ACES recap or the Poynter list.
What about University style?
The University Style Guide follows the Chicago Manual of Style, which does not make a determination itself on how to style healthcare. Instead, it advises following whichever style Merriam-Webster lists first. M-W still lists health care as two words, with healthcare as a variant.
However, Julia and I almost invariably see healthcare used as one word—not only in University comms, but also in the healthcare industry. Following AP’s lead, we are changing University style to healthcare, all one word, in all uses.
Refresh, don’t rewrite
Note: For more information on this monthly feature from Marketing Strategist Staci Stickovich, click here.
Rather than defaulting to new content, start your optimization efforts by revisiting what you already have. Last month, we covered the importance of meta descriptions. Now, make sure the page itself delivers on what is summarized in search results. A quick review can reveal easy opportunities to improve clarity and performance on pages that are already visible in search.
Here are a few ways to refresh old pages:
- Update headlines to better align with search queries.
- Check for and update outdated links.
- Refine language to better match your intended audience.
- Focus on improving clarity and quality of content over quantity.
May goal: Refresh at least one core web page by updating key elements to improve clarity and relevance to your target audience.
Pop quiz
Back to basics this month!
Click on your answer to submit your response. If you have the correct response, you’ll be entered into a drawing for a prize!
Should a comma be included before an ampersand in a list?
A note about the pop quiz
Please think of these monthly quizzes as open-book! I designed these quizzes to get readers more comfortable using the University Style Guide to the find the answer. You are encouraged to consult that before submitting your answer.
March pop quiz winner
Congrats to the winner of the March pop quiz: David Baiers, lead maintenance technician, St. Michael’s Laundry!
The March pop quiz was a two-question poll: Do you know when to use who and when to use whom? And do you think the difference still matters?
I was a bit surprised by the responses to the second question! Out of 50 respondents, only one person said no, the difference doesn’t matter. Twenty-nine said yes, and the remaining 20 said it does in some contexts but not all.
The demise of whom has been predicted for more than 100 years now. And yet, it’s still hanging around. Most people these days—except for Editor’s Note readers!—don’t bother making a distinction anymore, and the use of whom will often come across as stilted and stuffy in casual writing. However, it does still matter for formal writing—which means that for the most part, University communications should still use whom where it’s grammatically correct.
In the poll, eight out of 50 said they do not know when to use whom; another 17 said they know when to use it most of the time, but not every time. I won’t do better than Merriam-Webster in explaining when to use whom vs. who: Check out their in-depth explainer on the difference.
What we’re reading
These are stories that we found to be interesting, fun, or thought-provoking. The views are not necessarily endorsed. Want to share a story you found? Feel free to send it to me.
Young people want their news to be more fun, a new report says
Nieman Lab
Google Has a Secret Reference Desk. Here's How to Use It.
Card Catalog (Substack)
Latest style guide updates
first come, first served
Following Merriam-Webster, there are no hyphens in this phrase when it stands alone.
- The tickets are available first come, first served.
However, for easier readability, add hyphens when the phrase is followed by a noun.
- Snacks are available on a first-come, first-served basis.
- The first-come, first-served campsites fill up quickly.
healthcare
Following common usage, style this term as one word, no hyphen, in all instances.
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