County departments still face layoffs and cuts, but supervisors
preliminarily approved a plan Monday night to save the San Martin
health clinic on Highland Avenue.
San Jose – County departments still face layoffs and cuts, but supervisors preliminarily approved a plan Monday night to save the San Martin health clinic on Highland Avenue.
The plan involves using $9 million in additional revenues identified in April by the Santa Clara County Social Services Agency. The revenue allowed Santa Clara County Executive Pete Kutras to establish a reserve for mental health, public health and alcohol and drug services to partially restore cuts to those programs.
The reserve could save 72 nursing jobs originally scheduled to be cut as the county struggles to plug a $227 million deficit in its $3.5 billion budget.
After a week of budget hearings, supervisors will attempt to adopt the final 2007-08 budget Friday.
On Monday, supervisors asked health and hospital departments to incorporate the funds into their budgets. The adjustments won’t be finalized until the supervisors vote on the overall budget Friday.
Of the $9 million, roughly $3.4 million is targeted to restore public health services, including services for women, infants and children used by roughly 3,000 South County residents per month.
“For the individuals who can still obtain services, it’s significant,” said Guadalupe Olivas, director of the Santa Clara County Public Health Department. “It’s predominately those who are poor, or working poor. At last night’s (budget) hearing, there was a woman who worked as a legal aid who said without the (women, infants and children) program, she would not be able to afford baby formula. When I hear stories like that from people who really need these services, it’s pretty satisfying we’re able to restore some services needed by the working poor in the high-cost Bay Area.”
The extra funds also may preserve South County home visits by nurses aimed at helping high-risk low-income families, Olivas said.
Olivas said her department still faces $16 million in cuts next year after losing $18 million during the past five budget cycles. Health services that remain on the chopping block include immunization services, a violence prevention program offered on school campuses, a tobacco prevention program and the AIDS and sexually transmitted disease clinic in San Jose.
Additionally, roughly 75 public health positions are still slated to be eliminated.
“It’s a painful and challenging budget process, but the $3.4 million in restorations is a step in the right direction,” Olivas said.
The $9 million restoration plan also includes $4.1 million in relief for mental health services and $1.4 million for alcohol and drug services. The mental health department will combine these funds with $2.2 million in MediCal revenues to partially restore adult outpatient services provided by county and contract providers. Services to more than 1,600 clients would be restored.
The department Alcohol and Drug Services hopes to use the extra funds to partially restore transitional housing, outpatient and residential services used by roughly 1,400 clients.
