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Virginia Beach Health Department seeks continuing city match funding; cites partnerships and program continuity
Summary
Health Commissioner Caitlin Pedati told council the department’s FY26 request continues services funded through a city–state cooperative agreement and highlighted programs including Healthy Families, pediatric dental, and preparedness work on H5 and syphilis awareness.
Caitlin Pedati, commissioner of the Virginia Beach Health Department, presented the department’s FY26 operating request and said the city portion of public‑health funding supports a small local staff that works within a state–city cooperative agreement. "I'm speaking about the City's portion of our public health budget," Pedati said, noting the proposed plan is largely a continuation of current services rather than new initiatives.
Pedati identified the programs the city portion supports: Healthy Families (an early‑childhood home‑visiting program), pediatric dental services, lab services, and senior screening programs. She said the budget shows a modest increase tied to the cooperative match between locality and state but no major new expenditure requests.
The commissioner also briefed council on ongoing public‑health work: coordinated monitoring and response for H5, environmental health inspections for restaurants and pools, public‑health lab readiness for diseases such as measles, and outreach on a local syphilis awareness campaign.
Council members asked about a CDC grant that funded an "aging in place" partnership between fire/EMS and public health; Pedati said the CDC rescinded that grant but the city has unspent cooperative funds that can temporarily continue the program. Longer‑term sustainability plans include shifting some support to EMS billing if council adopts that program; additional city funds could be requested in the next budget if EMS billing is insufficient.
Pedati agreed to follow up with council on school partnerships, workforce development and other services that fall outside the city‑funded portion of public health.
