Decatur County adopts 2026 county health plan with targets on smoking, infant mortality, overdose and obesity

John Durbin, representing Decatur County public health, presented the county’s health plan on Oct. 6 and the Board of Commissioners approved it by voice vote.

Durbin said Indiana statute asks counties to produce a health plan tied to state health indicators. He told commissioners Decatur County performs well in several measures but identified four areas for focused improvement: cigarette smoking during pregnancy, infant mortality, opioid overdose rate and adult obesity. He summarized county rankings and targets: reductions in smoking during pregnancy (a stated target from roughly “80” in the county ranking toward a lower percentage), infant mortality (targeting a modest reduction), opioid overdose deaths (aiming for a 5–10% reduction overall) and youth vaping and smoking (target: a 20% reduction). Durbin said the plan is intended to be low- or no-cost where possible and will rely on existing staff and community partnerships.

Durbin described programmatic steps the county plans to pursue, including establishing an infant mortality review team to examine case-level causes and build prevention recommendations, expanding safe-sleep education and incentives, car-seat safety training (with additional technicians), and continuing the county’s overdose and suicide review team. He cautioned that infant-mortality statistics are unstable in small populations and emphasized incremental progress over multiple years.

After discussion and a motion to approve the plan, commissioners approved the county health plan by voice vote.

Durbin said the plan includes a 12-month timeline and measurable checklists for 2026 and that staff will revisit metrics and report progress to the board.