The Wayne County Health Department has reduced its 2025 budget request by approximately $13,000 from 2024 funding.
The County Board of Health approved the revised county budget and the Health First Indiana Department budget during its August 20 meeting, allowing the department to present the budgets to the Wayne County Council during a Council/Commission workshop on August 21.
The Council did not revise the budget during this meeting and will continue to review the budget as it prepares to adopt county budgets.
Dan Burk, who heads the health department, presented the $814,000 county budget and a $1,552,124.27 budget for Health First Indiana to the health department. Health First Indiana’s funding increased from $803,101.48 in 2024 because the state provided additional public health funding. County health contributions were budgeted at $827,541 in 2024.
For 2025, all employees of the health department were transferred to the district budget. This also includes the conversion of three positions from contract workers to district employees. This means that the department must also cover the additional services.
Next year’s budget also calls for a reorganization of the department’s administration. It calls for an executive director and two assistant executive directors – one for clinical and one for environmental. When the budget request was originally presented, no executive director position was included. After working with an executive director and an environmental director, it was decided that the county health officer had too many administrative responsibilities and an executive director was needed.
Dr. Paul Rider, chairman of the health board, said he has received four applications for the position of executive director. The position of clinical director is also currently open.
Miscellaneous
- The Board of Health and Wayne County Commissioners approved a revised contract that uses Purdue Extension as a subcontractor under the Health First Indiana program during their Aug. 21 meeting. Purdue University had requested the removal of a section that does not apply to Extension’s projects.
- The state does not allow the Department of Health to pay Birth-to-Five as a subcontractor to Health First Indiana from its Safety PIN (Protecting Indiana’s Newborns) grant. The Health Department has approved paying Birth-to-Five from the Department’s Health Fund.
- The syringe exchange program has been relocated to the Centerstone facility at 100 N. 15th St. It is available Tuesdays and Fridays from 12:00 p.m. to 1:30 p.m.
- A dying bat was found in Wayne County and tested positive for rabies after its death. There is no evidence that the bat transmitted rabies to humans.
- The Health Department approved the purchase of a Softworks software system to assist with the department’s financial management. The software would be purchased for $7,995, with an annual fee of $1,995. The county’s road department used the same software. The commissioners also approved the purchase.
- The health department keeps centuries-old birth and death records in bound volumes that it stores vertically, requiring some volumes to be rebound each year. The health committee approved $14,322 to purchase two cabinets that will store the books horizontally on pull-out shelves. However, commissioners asked the department to solicit two more bids.
- The health department and the health commissioners have voted to terminate the employment contract of a medical assistant.
A version of this article appeared in the August 28, 2024 print edition of the Western Wayne News.
