The 2024 Ottawa County budgets are due on September 26, 2023. In preparation for budget season and to coordinate efforts between departments, Ottawa County Fiscal Services Director Karen Karasinski established a timeline of meetings and milestones that was communicated to board members, department heads, and staff through newsletters and emails. During the September 5, 2023, Ottawa County Finance and Administration meeting, (3:33:00) Commissioner Joe Moss verified that Adeline Hambley, representing the Ottawa County Public Health Department, was aware of this timeline. Given her awareness of the timeline, why did she create public panic through press releases warning that the health department may have to close its doors when there were still over four weeks remaining to negotiate a budget?
This year, when budget season began, each county department began working on its respective 2024 budgets. On August 1, 2023, Ottawa County Commissioners saw the initial drafts of these budgets. This year the county added two additional public works sessions in order to increase transparency and give stakeholders more time for input and discussion. In addition, extra time was added to consider the capital improvement plan. As a result of these changes, the Capital Improvement Plan was modified, primarily during the August 8, 2023, Planning and Policy meeting, to focus on improvements to the health department buildings that will make them easier to access for people with disabilities.
During the August 10, 2023, Finance and Administration meeting, commissioners proposed a goal that all departments strive for a 5% reduction in expenses. During the August 21, 2023, Finance and Administration meeting, commissioners first expressed the desire to bring the Ottawa County Health Department more in line with pre-pandemic spending levels. Commissioner Moss explained that from 2009-2019 the general fund contributions to the health department were in the $2.5-$3 million range, and that a significant number of grants contribute to the public health department budget. Commissioner Moss stated, “I think a wise use of taxpayer funds is to look at bringing the general fund allocation for public health back towards its historical standard over the last 10 or so years.”
It was this request from August 21, 2023, that began a very public debate over health department funding. Rather than team up with the board and county administration to negotiate a budget and work through the established process, Adeline Hambley ran to the media, attempting to stoke public fear as a political weapon.
Hambley and several members of the health department created panic in the people of Ottawa County with press releases and social media posts. On August 24, 2023, the Ottawa County Health Department stated on social media, “These revisions amount to an 88% reduction in general funds for services, which will almost certainly close the health department within weeks of its implementation.”
This post included a detailed letter from Adeline Hambly that stated the following claims:
“It strips citizens of the services they are guaranteed under the law and the rights they are granted under the Michigan Constitution.”
“These actions may necessitate large increases in fees for services that our businesses and citizens depend upon, long delays for completion of services, or elimination of services.”
“12 mandated or community need-based programs will be eliminated by October 1, 2023 such as: Children’s Special Health Care Services, Dental Sealant Program and Miles of Smiles Mobile Dental Office for school children, Maternal and Infant Health Program for pregnant moms and infants, Family Planning and Women’s Health Services, Ottawa Food, Suicide Prevention Coalition, Pathways to Better Health, and others.”
Days later, on August 30, 2023, Hambly issued the following press release.
“As of today, Ottawa County Fiscal Services is creating a new Public Health budget at the direction of Administrator John Gibbs, without input from leadership at the health department. Public Health has not been consulted about this budget, or provided with any information on the proposed budget or suggested cuts. Despite Hambley’s best efforts to inform and educate County Administration on the complexity of funding mechanisms and statutory program requirements of a local health department in Michigan, and her offers to discuss public health programs, funding, and legal requirements on numerous occasions, the Health Officer was not included in this process.”
Additionally, Public Health Communication Specialist Alison Clark (she/her/hers) released the following statement.
Not only did our taxpayer-funded health department work to create public panic, but Commissioner Doug Zylstra participated as well.
These communications gave some members of the public the impression that the world was going to end, children were going to lose out on care, and the community would suffer. It appears to have been a coordinated effort to create a further public divide and reduce support of Ottawa Impact commissioners. Ironically, it was children during COVID who lost out on care when appointments such as hearing and vision screenings were cancelled.
This media blast placed an enormous amount of misleading information into the public sphere, and the record needed to be corrected. During the September 5, 2023, Finance and Administration meeting, the commissioners placed Hambley under oath. In an August 24, 2023 Twitter post, the Ottawa County Health Department tagged the following organizations: Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, Michigan Attorney General, National Association of County and City Health Officials, and the Network for Public Health Law. Commissioner Moss asked Hambley the reason these organizations were tagged. She responded, “These are agencies that have an interest in our funding and are directly impacted if we have to close our doors and cannot provide local public health services.” She went on to explain that she believed the health department would have to close. “We're looking at the Health Department closing four weeks after October and the public deserves to know. It's a significant threat to Public Health.”
Additional questions were asked during the September 5th meeting, and then the commissioners began working on correcting the record. Meanwhile, health department employees continued to rally the public with fear. On September 6th, several health department employees attended and spoke at a rally for the health department organized by Ottawa Integrity.
The following week, (3:05:20) During the September 12, 2023, Ottawa County Board of Commissioner meeting, County Administrator John Gibbs provided an update on the budget. Referring to the health department portion of the budget, he explained the aim was to return the health department budget to pre-COVID spending levels. He made it clear that the health department was being supported by stating, (3:09:55) “We all support public health. Everyone sitting here supports public health. We also do support our health department. We want it to run appropriately. We want it to run at the appropriate budget levels, and we all support our health department.”
Administrator Gibbs addressed many of the rumors which originated in communications from the Ottawa County Health Department. “There have been quite a few outlandish claims and emotional appeals that are not really based on facts. [] The idea that county food programs are going to be without funding or ending is not true. There are no cuts to children's programs. There are no cuts to children's special health. There are no cuts to maternal-infant care. Rather I believe in fact, it has been increased. There are no cuts to Miles of Smiles. A lot of the hype out there is not really based on reality.” Additionally, he made it clear that the health department is not being defunded, nor is it being funded at minimum levels. He explained that the health department would meet or exceed all state requirements, as it is the second-highest health department budget in the last 15 years. In addition, there is no known statute or requirement defining minimum service levels. This is an invented term created to discredit the commissioners. Finally, claims that if reproductive health funding does not meet levels deemed appropriate by the state, then MDHHS will step in and provide funding to Planned Parenthood to provide those services to Ottawa County residents are false. MDHHS has made no such claim to Ottawa County Officials, and the Ottawa County board plans to provide sufficient funding to cover required services.
Administrator Gibbs also explained that good health of a population is not determined solely by county health departments, rather, that is one small factor. “Family formation; stable two-parent married families, is one of the biggest indicators of health outcomes. So, anything we can do, such as protecting childhood innocence for example, which the board passed, goes a long way to producing better health outcomes. [] Socioeconomic status, as well, is a huge factor in producing better health outcomes. So, making sure we have economic growth, freedom, friendly environment for our businesses, is what we want to be doing here. [] The availability of private insurance; when there's widespread and affordable availability of private insurance, people have better health outcomes. [] It is not as though the county health department is the one and only thing that determines health outcomes, and the health outcomes of the county rise and fall based solely on the dollar amount of funding to the county health department. That is by no means true. We know scientifically that the factors I've mentioned are actually much larger in predicting health outcomes than any county or group.”
During the April 24, 2023, Community Mental Health Ottawa County (CMHOC) meeting, it was announced that Ottawa County is the second healthiest county in Michigan. Notice that 94.21% of residents have primary care physicians.
Administrator Gibbs compared the FY 24 proposed budget to past budgets:
It is 22% higher than the FY 19 budget, even though the county population has only grown by 5% since.
It is 7% higher than the 2021 budget.
Administrator Gibbs also compared the original budget for FY 24 proposed by the health department to past budgets:
It was five times higher than the population growth.
It would have been 26% higher than the budget proposed on September 12, 2023.
It would have been 14% higher than last year's budget. A 14% increase is much higher than inflation or population growth.
It would have been 53% higher than the pre-COVID budget in 2019. A 53% increase is far higher than inflation or population growth.
On September 19, 2023, at the Finance and Administration meeting, Commissioner Moss continued to put the proposed budget into perspective. “It is the second-highest budget in the history of the last 15 years for the health department. [] This is an increase. $14.397 million budgeted, that’s the highest number except one higher in the last 15 years. [] I understand the health department has met its obligations over the last 15 years.”
As a citizen, in an inflationary period, I am grateful the county commissioners are asking for discernment in how our public funds are spent. As someone who has worked many years as a private sector employee, I have difficulty comprehending the behavior of Adeline Hambley and the other Ottawa County Health Department employees. While questioning decisions and asking for clarification from managers and bosses is appropriate, running to the media and creating public panic seems highly unethical, especially when her claims are so easily refuted.