Federal cuts mean $40 million loss for state, local health departments
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Indiana health officials received notice this week that the federal government is clawing back funds sent to state and local health departments as part of a broader effort to offset economic turbulence during COVID-19.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced Tuesday is pulling back $11.4 billion nationwide, including an estimated $40 million in Indiana.
Greta Sanderson, chief communications officer for the Indiana Department of Health (IDOH), said the agency “has received this notification and is working to minimize the impact to Hoosiers.”
She did not answer questions seeking the amount of money or programs that would be effected.
However, during an agency bill in the Senate Health and Provider Services Committee on Wednesday, Sen. Ed. Charbonneau directly asked about the dollars, saying “We are all worried about things happening in Washington (D.C.).”
“I heard something … that could have a pretty devastating, pretty immediate effect on the Department of Health,” said the Valparaiso Republican. “Have you heard anything about it?”
Rachel Swartwood, the legislative and external affairs director at IDOH, told the committee that the agency first received news on Tuesday, saying “we’re still evaluating that and digging into the full impact, but we think it’s in the world of $40 million.”
“We are working with our team to evaluate what’s going on,” Swartwood said. “Our goal is to ensure no direct services to Hoosiers are disrupted and we will keep you updated.”
Sen. Liz Brown, R-Fort Wayne, asked whether the funding mostly affected county-level departments, to which Swartwood said the agency didn’t yet know.
Allen County health officials said they are not impacted. Inquiries to other counties were not immediately returned.
NBC News reported the clawed-back funds were largely being used for COVID testing, vaccination, community health workers as well as initiatives to address COVID health disparities.
The Indiana Capital Chronicle is an independent, not-for-profit news organization that covers state government, policy and elections.