Uncertainty permeated the Tulsa City of County Health Board meeting Wednesday, and a meeting on whether the agencies it oversees could lose funds due to federal spending cuts.
The Tulsa Health Department has said its own “Basic and complicated” role in the region. The department is involved in everything from restaurant testing to childhood vaccinations, employing people from the field, from nursing to emergency preparation.
Oklahoma has already seen the impact of President Donald Trump’s government efficiency (DOGE) defended by billionaire Ally Elon Musk. The White House office will help state federal workers fire scores, Imitation Initiative It is in shape at the state level.
“The staff are very concerned,” said Dr. Bruce Dart, executive director of the Tulsa Health Department at a meeting Wednesday. “The anxiety level here is very high.”
The Tulsa Health Department reported more than $43 million in total revenue for the 2023-2024 fiscal year. Over $13 million, or about 30%, came from federal grants. 2024 Report From an independent auditor.
In the same report in June 2024, the department is already on a volatile ground and faces problems with “disinformation,” a Medicaid managed care model pushed by Gov. Kevin Stitt, and budget cuts will continue to increase.
“Our local public health systems are expected to take more responsibility with fewer resources, which is why there is a growing pressure. We must do less, regardless of popular mantras.
Now the department says it doesn’t even know what it can do.
“We’re currently in the process of budget development,” Dart told the board. “It’s really hard to develop a budget when you don’t know if the dollar is coming or not. We’re moving forward because it’s much easier to cut the dollar than to get them back.”
THD consultants are also unsure about what the future will look like.
“Things are a little messy right now,” said Scott Adkins, a former state representative and legislative consultant.
“In my opinion, it’s going to get worse before it gets better,” he said. “In the 30 years since I’ve done this type of work, I have never felt any more helpless.”
Consultant Alexandra Adkins probably warned him. Reducing subsidies Federal healthcare markets and potential “a big surge in uninsured rates.”
Medicaid, which Oklahomans voted to expand in 2020, depends on balance. Republicans have vowed to keep their poverty-control program untouched, but critics say it’s not possible with the amount of slash needed to support the party’s proposed tax cuts to see the wealthiest Americans Get the most profit.
