Summit County health officials brief Norton council on lead abatement, vaccines and syringe program

Summit County Public Health officials visited the Norton City Council on Jan. 21 to outline department programs that could affect Norton residents, including a $6 million U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development grant for lead investigation, abatement and education.

Christopher Barker, health commissioner for Summit County Public Health, told council the department has 170 employees, a roughly $30 million operating budget and that grants make up about half of its revenue. “We recently awarded a $6,000,000 grant through HUD, to target lead abatement, lead investigation, and lead education,” Barker said.

The county representative to the Summit County Board of Health also described harm-reduction work. Dan Korant, Norton’s appointed representative to the county board, explained the syringe exchange program and donation logistics. He said donated syringes can be dropped off at the Medicine Shop Pharmacy for him to collect and reiterated that the program supplies 1 cc syringes in unopened packages for exchange to reduce disease spread.

Barker and Korant emphasized vaccination. Barker said influenza activity is high in the region and urged residents to “update their vaccinations and do so as soon as possible.” He noted that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends an additional COVID booster for people who are immunocompromised and described childhood-vaccination catch-up needs after the pandemic.

The health department has been distributing locking medication cases to prevent theft or misuse, Barker said, and will continue while supplies last. He also described the department’s clinical and family-health services, dental programs offered on a sliding fee scale, WIC services and an upcoming dental task force to evaluate access to dental care in the region.

Barker referenced the department’s online data and resources—including a community health assessment, improvement plan and a 2023 youth risk behavior survey—and encouraged council and residents to review those materials for more detail. He said the county’s environmental health division also manages food, water and air quality programs and noted the department is up for reaccreditation in spring 2025.

Council members asked for brochures and flyers about adult services and guardianship programs; a local letter carrier suggested distributing materials to help identify at-risk elderly residents. On syringe exchange logistics, Korant clarified the program is an exchange of clean syringes for used ones and not a pharmacy take-back for sharps.

No formal council action resulted from the presentation; the visit was informational and council members thanked the speakers before moving on to other agenda items.