He United States public health system It has been precarious for decades and lacks the resources necessary to face the worst health crisis in a century.
As they face a pandemic together that has infected at least 2.3 million people in the country and killed more than 120,000, and which has cost millions of jobs and $ 3 billion in federal resources, State and local government health workers are sometimes paid so little that they qualify for public aid. Coronavirus Tracked in Shared Fax Logs. After working seven days a week for months, they fear their wages will be frozen, they will be fired, and even the negative reaction of the population.
Since 2010, spending for state public health departments has decreased by 16% per capita, and spending for local health departments has decreased by 18%, according to an analysis by Kaiser Health News (KHN) y The Associated Press. At least 38,000 state and local public health jobs have disappeared since the 2008 recession, leaving a skeleton workforce in some places.
KHN y is AP They interviewed more than 150 public health workers, legislators, and experts; They analyzed spending records from hundreds of state and local health departments, and probed state legislatures. The investigation revealed that, at all levels, the system is threatened by financing problems.
Over time, state and local health departments have received so little support that they found themselves without direction, ignored, and even vilified.
Amid the economic downturn caused by the pandemic, states, cities, and counties have begun to layoff and lay off staff, even as states are reopening and cases of COVID-19.
“NThe We say to the fire department, ‘Sorry, there were no fires last year, so we are going to take 30% of your budget.’ That would be crazy, right?Said Dr. Gianfranco Pezzino, a health officer in Shawnee County, Kansas. “But we do it with public health, day after day”.
The Toledo-Lucas County Health Department in Ohio spent just $ 40 per person in 2017. When the coronavirus spread, it was so understaffed that the duties of Jennifer Gottschalk, environmental health supervisor, included overseeing camp and pool inspections, and rodent control, in addition to outbreak preparation.
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