TITLE
Recommendation to authorize City Manager, or designee, to execute all necessary documents and any subsequent amendments, including any amendments to the award amount, with the State of California Department of Public Health (CDPH), to accept and expend funding in an amount not to exceed $2,807,624, for public health workforce and infrastructure, for the period of July 1, 2022 through June 30, 2023, with the option to extend for an additional one-year period, at the discretion of the City Manager; and
Increase appropriations in the Health Fund Group in the Health and Human Services Department by $2,807,624, offset by grant revenue. (Citywide)
DISCUSSION
The California Department of Public Health (CDPH) is awarding $2,807,624 to the Health and Human Services Department (Health Department) to enhance the City of Long Beach’s (City) public health workforce and infrastructure for the period of July 1, 2022 through June 30, 2023. These funds are considered ongoing and is part of the State’s baseline budget.
The COVID-19 pandemic emphasized the need for adequate investment in public health and exposed significant gaps in the ability of CDPH and local health jurisdictions (LHJs) to respond to the needs of Californians rapidly and sustainably. While COVID-19 response has been successful, it has also exposed new challenges and highlighted several existing issues, including, but not limited to, health equity concerns with racial/ethnic and socio-geographic disparities in health access and outcomes; maintenance of regular operations when staff were redirected to large scale responses; implementation of testing, contact tracing, and vaccine infrastructure with insufficient historical investment for current needs; and insufficient administrative (financial management, grants management, contracts management, and personnel services), and communications infrastructure required to manage and track large scale funding streams effectively, recruit efficiently, and com...
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