Health Depts. Brace For Fewer Flu Shots, Services

CENTRAL OHIO—The Ohio Department of Health said it will limit its distribution of the regular flu vaccine for 2009.

NBC 4 reported with the FAST FACTS.

Instead of having 90,000 shots available, ODH’s budget only allows it to purchase half or 45,000 vaccines.

That 50-percent drop means only select groups of Ohioans will get those shots.

ODH said it will concentrate vaccination efforts on high-risk patients, the uninsured and those unable to pay for it.

Other state-funded health programs taking a hit include breast- and cervical-cancer screenings, and subsidies paid to county and city health departments.

Joe Ebel is commissioner of the Licking County Health Department. He said programs will be tougher to run during the next two years.

For instances, the Licking County Help Me Grow program helps at-risk babies get a healthy start in life. More than 200 babies and their mothers are enrolled, but changes in eligibility requirements may drop that number to just 25 kids.

Licking County was receiving $40,000 in state subsidy dollars a year. That money paid for school inspections, investigating dog bite claims and nuisance complaints. The state is cutting that amount by 30 percent over the next two years.

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