Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Health Department Funding topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Henry County health director warns of large cut to Health First funding; department may reduce staff
Summary
Henry County Health Department director reported a likely reduction in Health First (HFI) funding and a rescinded immunization grant, and outlined how the department may respond in the 2026 budget cycle.
Angela, identified at the meeting as the county health department representative, told the council that a state decision to remove $50 million from an anticipated Health First (HFI) allocation would likely reduce county HFI payments versus 2025 levels.
“Governor Braun has removed 50,000,000 from the hundred and 50,000,000 that we were told that we would be planning our 2026 budget from,” Angela said, describing preliminary statewide allocations. She told the group the change translates to roughly a $500,000 reduction if the $50 million were divided evenly among 95 counties; she cautioned, however, that distribution formulas make the final county impact uncertain and that county-by-county amounts could differ.
Angela gave precise figures for 2025 HFI: “In 2025, we received, $1,067,001.57 and 4¢,” and said the county’s minimum match for that year was $238,004.55 and 75¢. She said her planning assumption for the 2026 budget would be to “shoot for about 550,000 coming from HFI” and to use the minimum required local match for planning.
Angela also described an abrupt change to a smaller immunization grant that affected the health department’s cash flow: she said she received an email stating the remainder of that immunization grant was being rescinded, which initially cut roughly $38,000, then later was revised so a smaller amount (about $7,000) would be pulled and $31,000 remained available to spend.
Why it matters: the health department provides nursing, environmental health fees and other services that the county cannot easily shift to other sources. Angela warned that reduced HFI support will likely force staffing reductions: “I will have I'll lose staff, and and that's just it is what it is.” She said the department’s revenue primarily comes from environmental health fees (birth/death records, food establishment and septic permits) and that nursing generally operates at break-even because it cannot bill insurance effectively.
Council members and staff asked for additional detail about the department’s reserves and spending history to inform the 2026 budget: one council member requested more back-end numbers showing actual expenditures (not just budgets) in comparable counties to explain why some counties appear to hold larger balances. Angela said she would plan conservatively and budget to the minimum HFI match if state action reduces HFI.
Ending: Angela asked that future meeting announcements be better distributed to department heads; council members agreed and the auditor’s office pledged to improve distribution. Angela said the health department will prepare budgets assuming a smaller HFI allocation and focus on the minimum match; she warned that staffing reductions are likely if the cut is realized.
