Mountain State Spotlight, Beckley Register-Herald, WDTV, Yahoo News, Opera News – Five years ago, West Virginia lawmakers cut state funding to local health departments by 25%. Read the full article.
The move — equivalent to an annual loss of $4 million — was a hit to the infrastructure that supports the well-being of our communities: the local workers who protect West Virginians against the spread of communicable disease, inspecting restaurants, responding to environmental hazards and providing basic health care services to residents in need.
Although lawmakers restored about half of that funding in 2019, local health officials say they’ve felt the impact.
“Public health has always been underfunded, and back when those cuts were made, a lot of departments lost staff and programming,” said Lloyd White, administrator of the Marion County Health Department.
