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Perry County health director defends reduced HFI budget as council presses for proof ambulance spending meets prevention rules
Summary
Health Department Director Tara Lucas told the council the 2026 Health First Indiana (HFI) budget reflects carryover strategy and deep state cuts; council members demanded documentation showing any ambulance or EMS spending can be reported as a required preventative core service before funds are approved.
Tara Lucas, Perry County health department director, told the county council on the department’s 2026 budget that a requested $11.59 carryover was intended to convert a 2025 stipend into salary and that the department had not asked for broader salary increases. "We are not asked to do any less on this budget. Everything is the same," Lucas said.
Lucas said the department drafted the smaller 2026 HFI budget after discussing 2025 carryover and regional guidance so essential programs could continue into 2026–27 "with the massive funding cuts." She described line-item reductions (office supplies, school-liaison supplies) while preserving core services such as prenatal vitamins, epinephrine and safe-sleep…
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