Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Public Health topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Okaloosa health department absorbs Healthy Start program, seeks $35,000 to cover permit cycle deficit
Summary
Okaloosa County health department told commissioners July 22 it took over the Healthy Start program from a coalition and will request a $35,000 increase to cover permitting cycle timing after absorbing environmental health services including body‑art permitting.
Beth Smith, administrator of the Okaloosa County Health Department, told the Board of County Commissioners on July 22 that the department has assumed the Healthy Start program after the program’s prior service provider did not renew its contract.
Smith said the health department combined Healthy Start with its Women, Infants and Children (WIC) services and that the transition has proceeded smoothly. She also reported that responsibility for the county’s septic program moved to the Department of Environmental Protection earlier in the year.
Smith told commissioners that some environmental‑health permitting cycles, specifically body‑art and tattoo inspections and permitting previously handled regionally, were brought in‑house to speed inspections and improve local oversight. “Not only is that a benefit to the constituents and the citizens to have local people, but it also helps us to keep a better handle on…up‑to‑date inspections,” Smith said.
Because of permitting‑cycle timing after adding the body‑art program, Smith said the department is requesting a $35,000 increase in county support to cover an initial deficit until fee revenue catches up over the year. “We anticipate that by the end of the year that we’ll be able to fill that up…start generating revenues,” she said, noting that county support accounts for about 6.4% of the department’s total budget.
Smith also described ongoing community programs administered or supported by the health department, including local Healthy Communities initiatives focused on pedestrian safety, a housing summit partnership, overdose‑awareness month activities and collaboration on a post‑overdose response program run with local partners.
The board did not take an immediate vote on Smith’s request on July 22; the item was presented as part of department budget hearings during the workshop.
Questions and brief comments followed from commissioners thanking the health department for immunizations, disease surveillance and community outreach.
