Butler County health department reports WIC cut, staff vacancies and new outreach efforts after flood response
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Summary
Health staff told commissioners about a $29,000 WIC reduction, the end of MRC funding, staff vacancies (including an unfilled nurse position), vaccination and car-seat outreach after the floods, and new costs such as calibration and courier services shifting to local budgets.
Butler County Health Department staff summarized accomplishments and budget pressures for commissioners during the July 8 workshop, reporting program activity after flooding and warning about grant cuts and staffing gaps.
The department used workforce-development grant funds to provide staff training, tuition assistance and equipment that supported service delivery after the floods, including drive-through vaccine and tetanus clinics; staff said the county provided nearly 100 tetanus shots at two pop-up clinics after flood operations. The department reported record attendance at a baby-shower-style community event and said staff completed new child-passenger safety certifications and added an in-house tobacco treatment specialist.
On funding, the health director said the WIC grant had an immediate $29,000 cut as of June 1; the county temporarily used workforce-development grant funds to cover staff until the federal program resumes October 1 and the state implements a new funding formula that the department hopes will increase county allocations in 2026. The department also reported that the Medical Reserve Corps (MRC) funding ended June 30; the county retained one MRC support position through August using workforce-development funds but the employee plans to resign in August.
Staff said they have a vacant nurse position open since January that they have not been able to fill because candidate salary expectations exceed the county's current offer; the director said starting salary ranges for nurses in the draft pay plan run from approximately $23.33 to $34 per hour and that some candidates are seeking salaries up to about $45 per hour in other settings.
Operational pressures include two new recurring costs: fit-test machine calibration the state will no longer cover (about $1,600 per unit) and potential loss of the state courier service that delivers laboratory samples; the department said replacing the courier will cost and that it will coordinate with local partners if the county must fund regular courier runs.
No budget vote was taken; the department asked commissioners to note the grant changes and staffing challenges and to consider the staffing implications in the broader compensation discussion.