Boom, Now Bust: Budget Cuts And Layoffs Take Hold In Public Health

Jazmin Orozco Rodriguez | KFF Health News (TNS) Even as federal aid poured into state budgets in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, public health leaders warned of a boom-and-bust funding cycle on the horizon as the emergency ended and federal grants sunsetted. Now, that drought has become reality and state governments are slashing budgets that feed local health departments. Congress allotted more than $800 billion to support states’ COVID responses, fueling a surge in the public health workforce nationwide. Local health department staffing grew by about 19% from 2019 to 2022, according to a report from the National Association of County and City Health Officials that studied 2,512 of the nation’s roughly 3,300 local departments.