Metro Public Health director details $11M in lost grants, budget priorities and service changes

Director Somi Areola, director of the Metro Public Health Department, told the Metro Nashville Council Budget & Finance Committee that the department has lost three grants totaling a little over $11 million and described steps the department and the mayor’s proposed budget are taking to limit service disruptions.

Areola said the department is prioritizing infectious-disease work, behavioral-health and chronic-disease prevention while moving staff across funds and using mayoral budget adjustments to replace some lost grant positions. "Public health is everything that you do, everything that happens to you before you need to seek clinical care," she said.

Why it matters: The department is responsible for immunizations, tuberculosis and sexually transmitted infection control, school nursing, community violence prevention, opioid response and Metro Animal Care and Control (MAC). Cuts to grants have already led to staff reassignments and six layoffs; further reductions, she warned, could affect resident health outcomes.

Key points

Funding and staffing

- Areola said three grants were lost, totaling a little over $11 million. She credited the mayor’s proposed budget with covering some of the immediate gaps and enabling the department to move several staff members between funds to retain services.

- The department reported six staff were let go because of funding losses; other at-risk positions were moved into remaining funds or into mayoral budget allocations.

- The Metro Board of Health approved a salary adjustment for some high-turnover positions…