The McLean County Health Department [MCHD] ramped up surveillance of infectious diseases following the COVID-19 pandemic, and it did that with the help of federal funding, which is now in jeopardy.
The Trump administration is trying to claw back a $600,000 grant, arguing the funding is no longer needed because the pandemic is over.
A court has temporarily blocked the move, leaving the health department in limbo.
That funding pays an epidemiologist along with other staffing, plus supplies, including masks, air filters and COVID tests for high-risk areas, such as congregant settings including shelters, long-term care facilities and jails.
McLean County Health Department administrator Jessica McKnight said the grant helps the county target high-risk areas for infectious diseases.
“It’s a foundation of what we do and it’s not because the pandemic may be waning or over, it doesn’t change our duties or responsibilities,” McKnight said on WGLT’s Sound Ideas. “We still do disease surveillance and respond.”
McKnight said the county will find a way to track and prevent infectious diseases with or without the grant.
“If the termination does stand… what priorities are there and how can we use the funding we already have,” McKnight said.
Many local governments across the country are in the same fight to maintain $11 billion in funding already pledged to them.
The COVID pandemic, which is believed to have caused 1.2 million deaths, was formally declared over on May 11, 2023.
McKnight said she believes the county is as prepared as it can be if the country were to experience another disease outbreak.
“We are lucky we have staff now that have gone through this pandemic, so we have that knowledge and experience,” she said.
Measles vaccinations
McKnight said she's encouraged by higher vaccination rates in McLean County for infectious diseases, including measles.
“At this moment, we don’t have any issues or concerns, but there are always pockets of potential vulnerabilities where vaccination may be lower rates,” McKnight said.
According to the Illinois Department of Public Health’s [IDPH] new measles dashboard, most McLean County schools have a measles vaccination rate topping 95%, the rate the World Health Organization defines as the baseline for herd immunity.
