Beginning July 1st, many county public health departments across Kentucky will be open fewer hours, and some will have smaller staffs. Linda Sims, president of the Kentucky Health Department Association and executive director of the Lincoln Trail District Health Department, which covers Hardin and six other counties, says the upcoming fiscal year will be one of the toughest in recent years for local health departments. Each of Kentucky's local health departments is an independent quasi-governmental agency and receives a portion of its budget from local taxes. The minimum tax for county health departments is 1.8 percent. Some counties' public health tax is as a high as 4 percent. With the recession, many local health departments saw local tax revenue flatten or decrease. The departments also receive state and federal money and may charge for clinical services such as family planning. Shawn Crabtree, executive director of the Lake Cumberland District Health Department, which covers 10 southeastern Kentucky counties, says his department will not have furloughs this year. In fact, state funding for his district actually increased, partly because the district serves one of the highest-poverty areas in the state. Crabtree says his department has downsized during the past three years, and the district has taken about a $4 million hit during the past few years as other costs such as retirement and insurance have increased and state funding has gone down.
