Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Austin public health workers say federal funding cuts threaten services and jobs
Summary
At a May public-health committee meeting, union leaders, clinic nurses and APH staff said recent federal funding cuts risk core services — immunizations, refugee medical care and outreach — and urged the city to prioritize retaining frontline workers while the council considers budget options.
At a May 15 meeting of the Austin City Council Public Health Committee, union leaders and Austin Public Health staff warned that recent federal funding cuts have put immunization programs, the Austin Refugee Clinic and dozens of public-health jobs at risk.
Bryden Summers, president of AFSCME Local 1624, said the city lost $22,000,000 in federal funding and urged council to ‘‘prioritize the preservation of community critical health programs and frontline jobs.’’ He said workers already trained and delivering services face “tremendous uncertainty.”
The testimony, delivered during the committee’s public-communication period, included multiple accounts from clinic staff. Beth Savarkle, a registered nurse at the Austin Refugee Clinic, told the committee the clinic is “100% federally funded” and provided nearly 17,000 vaccines last year, including more than 1,200 measles…
Already have an account? Log in
Subscribe to keep reading
Unlock the rest of this article — and every article on Citizen Portal.
- Unlimited articles
- AI-powered breakdowns of topics, speakers, decisions, and budgets
- Instant alerts when your location has a new meeting
- Follow topics and more locations
- 1,000 AI Insights / month, plus AI Chat
