One of the biggest fundamental responses our state made after the COVID-19 pandemic was recognizing that local public health efforts have been underfunded for far too long.
Lawmakers didn’t give Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb everything he asked for, but they did pass the Health First Initiative, which provides state funding for local county health departments at levels they have never seen before. In Bartholomew County, that equated to more than $928,000 this year and an expected $1.78 million next year. That’s a huge jump from the comparative peanuts — less than $100,000 a year — the state previously provided.
As The Republic’s Andy East wrote, officials described the funding as “a ‘never-before-experienced opportunity’ to expand public health efforts through a statewide initiative aiming to ‘transform public health’ in Indiana, which lags behind much of the country in public health outcomes.”
This money has the potential to improve the health of individuals and overall community health, but it also relies on people choosing to take steps to improve their own well-being.
One of the areas where we can do better is a concerted effort to reduce smoking, which remains a leading cause of death fully 60 years after the first surgeon general’s warning concluding that smoking causes lung cancer and raises the risk of heart disease.
People continue to smoke because it’s addictive, and sometimes it takes several tries to quit.
Amanda Organist, director of nursing at the Bartholomew County Health Department, said that among other things, the increase in funding has allowed the department to work on addressing what is known to be a top problem locally.
“… (W)e have implemented screenings for tobacco use to be able to provide referrals and nicotine replacement therapy for those that are interested in quitting,” Organist told East.
That’s a wise use of those new state dollars. According to 2021 research from the Columbus Regional Health Foundation, 21.5% of Bartholomew County adults smoke. That’s well above the state average of 19.4% and significantly higher than the national average of 14%.
Still, those numbers keep declining compared to earlier years. For instance, the smoking rate in the county was 24% in 2020.
Funding smoking cessation efforts will help people live healthier, longer lives, and it’s probably the single best preventive effort a person can take. So the local Health Department’s focus on helping people quit is well-placed.
The Health Department also is using this new state funding to increase staff recruitment and retention and provide a number of clinics and screenings, including for immunizations and testing for sexually transmitted infections, hepatitis C testing and lead, Organist told East.
The funding also requires local health departments to “outline how spending of funding is assisting our customers,” said Link Fulp, director of environmental health at the Bartholomew County Health Department. The reporting requirements attached to the funding help ensure that the most pressing local needs will be addressed.
In redoubling efforts to help people quit smoking and expanding numerous other health screenings, the prognosis looks good.
