Fiscal Note
The proposed resolution amends the Public Health Madison and Dane County 2022 Operating Budget and increases staff to expand Sexual and Reproductive Health Services. Seven full-time positions will be created to support this expansion including a Public Health Supervisor, a Nurse Practitioner, three Public Health Nurses, a Public Health Aide, and a Clerk. The cost of these positions in 2022 is $129,133. Supplies necessary to expand the clinic have been identified as $101,700. The expansion will be initially funded in 2022 by Dane County at a total of $230,833.
The annual costs of this expansion are approximately $1.1 million and beginning in 2023, will be shared by the City of Madison and Dane County according to equalized value as defined within the Public Health Intragovernmental Agreement.
Title
Amending the 2022 Operating Budget to Increase Staff for Public Health Madison and Dane County to Expand Sexual and Reproductive Health Services
Body
WHEREAS, Public Health Madison & Dane County (Public Health) believes that access to a full range of equitable and evidence based reproductive health care is necessary for healthy and thriving people who may become pregnant, children, families, and communities; and
WHEREAS, Reproductive Justice, as defined by SisterSong, is “the right to maintain personal bodily autonomy, have children, not have children, and parent the children we have in safe and sustainability communities”; and
WHEREAS, the recent change in federal law has far-reaching impacts for City of Madison and Dane County residents, the services provided to them and limits the pursuit of reproductive justice; and
WHEREAS, Public Health currently provides a wide range of services to City of Madison and Dane County residents, including sexual and reproductive health care, maternal and child health care, and all options counseling services which interface with people who are pregnant or may become pregnant in the future; and
WHEREAS, Public Health has provided limited reproductive health care services, through the Sexual and Reproductive Health (SRH) clinic at 2705 E. Washington Avenue in Madison, which is open 16 hours per week. The program serves clients with a wide range of sexual health services including birth control, emergency contraception, STI testing, and more. The vast majority (98%) of clients currently served by the Public Health Sexual and Reproductive Health (SRH) receive testing and treatment for sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and predominantly (70%) identify as male, with a far lower percentage of clients seeking reproductive health care; and
WHEREAS, staff who support clinical services also provide STI follow up and case management services outside of clinic hours. Given limited staff capacity, without additional resources Public Health is unable to expand hours or the services provided; and
WHEREAS, in pursuit of reproductive justice, with the goal of making reproductive health care as accessible as possible, additional funding will be allocated to Public Health will expand the SRH staff, hours, and provide more comprehensive reproductive health services. Additional resources will allow expansion of services to include long acting reversible contraception (LARC), such as Intrauterine Devices, or IUDs, that provide long-term pregnancy prevention; and
WHEREAS, similar initiatives, such as the Colorado Family Planning Initiative, have proven to drastically improve reproductive health outcomes in the community, including-a 40% decrease in teen birth rates, a 24% reduction of high risk births within 2 years, a reduction in abortion rates by 18-42%; and
WHEREAS, this additional staff capacity will also allow Public Health to increase outreach and education efforts and work with community stakeholders so that everyone’s reproductive rights are protected and honored; and
WHEREAS, the seven positions created to support this expansion include a M12 Public Health Supervisor-Sexual and Reproductive Health Clinic (1.0 FTE); N20 Nurse Practitioner* (1.0FTE), N18 Public Health Nurse (3.0FTE), G12 Public Health Aide (1.0FTE) and G13 Clerk III (1.0) FTE. The N20 Nurse Practitioner will be a newly created pay range with Dane County Employee Group 1199; and
WHEREAS, the cost of these positions in 2022 is $129,133 and supplies to expand the clinic have been identified as $101,700 for the fourth quarter of 2022; and
WHEREAS, the expansion will be initially funded in 2022 by Dane County at a total of $230,833; and
WHEREAS, the costs of this expansion will be annualized starting in 2023 in the amount of approximately $1.1 million with the costs shared by the City of Madison and Dane County according to equalized value as defined within the Public Health Intragovernmental Agreement.
NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the above positions be created with an effective date of October 1, 2022; and
BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED that the Public Health 2022 operating budget is amended to increase funding from Dane County by $230,833 and to increase expenditure authority for the expansion of the SRH Clinic by the same amount.