NJ Public Health Spending Patterns
This is essentially background for a bigger picture as I try to figure out why local public health agencies are lobbying for S2413/A4115, which would require a minimum annual State appropriation of $10 million for Public Health Priority Funding.
You can learn a lot by reviewing the NJDOH press release archives. Patterns in spending and prioritizing over time give us clues about where public health is leading us.
While they can’t provide the entire picture, here’s some of what DOH press releases from 2019 to present tell us….
2019
In the year before the COVID pandemic, health agencies received $2.3 million to strengthen communicable disease response, $3.1 million for enhanced emergency preparedness and $670 million for NJ hospitals.
(I specifically remember some of this because my then Board of Health used their $95,000 grant to purchase a refrigerated truck for mobile vaccine distribution.)
In 2019, significant funding went towards opioid addiction.
$8 million was designated to “help county jails treat opioid addiction,”
The CDC provided a $7.4 million grant “to address drug overdoses in the state.”
NJDOH provided $6 million for health information technology and surviellence to support the Substance Use Disorder Promoting Interoperability Program (SUD PIP).
In contrast, $500,000 went to supporting health services for military members, veterans and first responders.
NJDOH was also awarded more than $2.3 million towards pediatric telehealth programs for primary, behavioral and mental health care. (how prescient!)
The NJDOH also received a $450,000 federal grant to support maternal mortality efforts and also awarded $114,000 to develop a statewide Breastfeeding Strategic Plan for New Jersey.
2020
In 2020, public health was infused with considerably more money. NJDOH invested $32.3 million in local public health to support COVID-19 responses.
In January, prior to COVID, NJ’s Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Task Force received a $650,000 grant from the DOH to hire regional EMS coordinators “to help prepare for and respond to mass casualty incidents.”
Additionally, NJ received another $7.1 million federal grant to address the overdose epidemic, distributed $155 million in additional funding went to ensure health, safety and quality in long-term care facilities and appropriated $9.5 million for “family planning services.”
2021
In 2021, NJ received $267 million in funding for school COVID protocols, provided $731 million in hospital funding (to provide “uncompensated care to our uninsured residents during the COVID-19 pandemic”) and $3.68 million to address youth suicide ( as it acknowledged “a parallel pandemic of depression and anxiety is emerging among New Jersey's youth.”).
NJDOH granted an additional $800,000 in “infection prevention funding” to the New Jersey Hospital Association (NJHA), Healthcare Association of New Jersey, Rutgers Project ECHO, and the New Jersey Association of County and City Health Officials (NJACCHO). “The awarded funding was part of a competitive process in which applicants applied for a range of funding by submitting tentative project plans that were systematically reviewed for their educational content and delivery, target audiences and communication plans.”
And finally, a $250,000 grant opportunity was announced to support further development of integrated care networks in New Jersey that can meet the ongoing primary and behavioral health care needs of military, veterans, and first responders.
The grant funding, made available through the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), will assist local educational agencies (LEAs) and nonpublic schools with implementing COVID-19 screening testing, including that required for unvaccinated school personnel by Executive Order No. 253. Participation in this funding program is voluntary but strongly encouraged.
2022
In June, NJDOH announced another $250 grant opportunity to integrate health care for military, veterans and first responders.
In July, the Murphy administration announced another $794 million for NJ hospitals as part of a continued effort to provide care for uninsured residents at no cost.
In November, the DOH announced $116.5 milllion toward strengthening public health infrastrucure.
2023
At the start of 2023, NJDOH announced plans to grant $80,500,000 to “strengthen health work force, build foundational capacities and modernize data infrastructure.”
In May, NJDOH announced another $250 grant opportunity to integrate health care for military, veterans and first responders.
In July, 3 NJ maternal and child health agencies, including First Lady Tammy Murphy’s Nurture NJ initiative, were awarded $3.5 million in grant funding to improve Black and Hispanic infant and maternal mortality.
In August, The New Jersey Commission on Cancer Research (NJCCR) awarded nearly $3.5 million in funding to support cancer research
In September, the NJDOH announced a $250,000 grant opportunity for a program to support youth mental health through parent and professional engagement.
NJDOH will receive $79,590,240 in the first year of the grant from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) as part of a financial assistance award totaling $80,541,230 with 100 percent funded by CDC/HHS. Future year funding will be based on satisfactory programmatic progress and availability of funds.
Some big investments were made in public health infrastructure. We should stop and think about where that has gotten us.
I seriously doubt 8 million went to help jails fight opioid addiction...!