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Board approves public health plan after amendments; YAS and Wear 1 to be discontinued
Summary
After a lengthy discussion, the board approved the Ottawa County Department of Public Health Plan of Organization for cycle 9 and directed the health department to discontinue participation in the Youth Assessment Survey (YAS) and the Wear 1 program as of March 24, 2026.
The Ottawa County Board of Commissioners approved the local public health Plan of Organization for cycle 9 on March 24 after debate over whether the plan should include two programs — the Youth Assessment Survey (YAS) and the "Wear 1" program.
Commissioner Minema moved to remove those items from the plan; legal counsel and staff advised the board the plan is primarily a statutory, backward-looking report required by MDHHS and that removing activities that the department reported could jeopardize state processing. Commissioners then agreed on a middle path: they voted to add two sentences to the plan documenting that, "at the direction of the local governing entity," the Ottawa County Department of Public Health ended participation with the YAS committee and the youth assessment survey and discontinued the Wear 1 program, both effective 03/24/2026. After those edits the board voted to authorize the chair to sign the plan for submission to the state.
Administrators explained the plan is intended to document capacity and activities for accreditation and state reporting; commissioners said any substantive policy decisions or funding changes related to those programs should be addressed through committee review and budget decisions.
The board's action ensures the state receives the county's required documentation while creating an explicit record that two specific activities are discontinued effective the date of the meeting.
