Funding Local Health Departments

​Arguably the most pressing issue that public health officials face is a lack of staff and funding, leaving them woefully underprepared for pandemics and other public health crises. This may seem shocking, considering that in 2017 the federal government spent almost $3.5 trillion on healthcare--however, it is estimated that public health funding represented only 2.5% of that total (Modern Healthcare). According to the Trust for America’s Health, state and municipal public health organizations are almost $4.5 billion underfunded. The COVID-19 pandemic has only exacerbated this issue.

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Author

Ellie Gottlieb
Outbreak! 2020

Additionally, there is a lack of money to hire more personnel. With so many officials working on contact tracing, the necessary things that the town must deal with have been put to the side, such as septic and restaurant inspections. Many municipal budgets simply do not know how to cope with new hires, especially during this time. The state has provided some money to cope with this, but public health officials find themselves working long hours with inadequate rest.
This is especially pressing for small towns like mine. The Board of Health in Sudbury, Massachusetts, felt underprepared and understaffed for the pandemic. Having attended the meetings of the Board since the onset of the epidemic, my biggest takeaway is the sheer shortage of staff to handle this pandemic. The Board nurse has stated that she’s working long hours every day: “All the other duties that I do have basically been put on hold right now...It used to be a 35 hour a week position; I’m probably working close to 60 with 11 other nurses reporting to me right now” (Qtd. in The Forum). Contact tracing, which can be very time-consuming, leaves the Board of Health officials with little time to handle other issues. ​