County board of health will retain pair of programs

By BRYCE KELLY

Mt. Pleasant News

The future still looks bright for two major health programs in the Henry County area.

During the Henry County Board of Health?s meeting on Tuesday, May 26, the board had a time of open discussion about whether or not to continue the Care for Yourself Program and the Healthy Homes and Lead Poisoning Prevention Program, and both were given the nod to proceed into this year.

The latter is a program in which local staff assist women in scheduling clinical breast exams, mammograms, pelvic exams, Pap tests, height and weight measurements, blood pressure, cholesterol and glucose tests to check heart disease risk. The program is only open to women that cannot obtain health insurance coverage for these particular services.

In the past, the Care for Yourself Program has been widely used locally, but recently, the number of women using the program has decreased.

?In the past, we have had a waiting list that was up to 20 women deep at times, but due to Medicaid expansion, we are starting to see fewer women who are eligible for the program because they now have insurance coverage,? said Travis Johnson, community health director at HCHC

Henry County currently shares the program with Van Buren, Lee and Des Moines Counties. At this time, 19 women are enrolled in the program between all four counties.

To pay for the program, the county will be reimbursed $150 per woman that is enrolled in the program. The state is expected to provide about $2,000 to help offset the cost of outreach funding and the cost of staffing the program.

?I do understand that Obamacare has made a large portion of women ineligible for this program because they now have coverage, but at the same time, I don?t want to pull this program away from that smaller group of women who may need it,? said board member, Dr. Robert Welander.

The Healthy Homes and Lead Poisoning Prevention Program (HHLPP) provides lead poisoning testing to children and home investigation services for children who test positive for higher levels of lead in their system.

?We test about 15 to 18 kids per month as part of this program,? said Johnson. ?In the last few years, Henry County has had several kids that have had a high enough level of lead in their system that we had to do a home investigation or follow-up.?

Lead can harm children?s nervous systems and is associated with reduced IQ, behavioral problems and learning disabilities.

Before children enter the public school system, they must have a lead screening done. Typically, children who regularly have check-ups at a doctor?s office can get a lead screening done through their physician rather than going through the HHLPP.

This year, the program?s funding will likely be cut by about 15 to 20 percent. To save on program costs, Henry County does share some testing equipment with Des Moines and Lee County.

?I think given the fact that Henry County has shown a fairly consistent need for this type of testing outside of a regular doctor?s visit setting, we should continue with the program,? said board member, Rose Lauer.

Besides talk of continuing health programs, the board also heard a report on current diseases and infection risks in the area.

?This is prime time for salmonella infection and shigella infection,? said Johnson. ?Both of these infections are popping up more and more, and recently have exceeded the average for this month.?

The board is urging the public to be vigilant about taking the proper procedures to better protect against contracting these types of infections. The board suggests consulting a local physician on how you can better protect yourself against these types of infections.

Board business also included the following items:

Jodi Sutter, Henry County Environmental Health Specialist, presented an extension agreement on various food contracts, which were all approved by the board.

Sutter also presented a contract agreement to provide annual inspections to local septic pumping entities, which were approved.

The board reviewed a community health needs assessment, and plans to discuss it more in-depth at a later date.

The next meeting of the Henry County Board of Health is set for June 23, at 12:30 p.m., at Henry County Health Center.