Health department merger streamlining services for residents

Leonard L. Hayhurst, Coshocton Tribune
·3 min read

COSHOCTON − Improving efficiency and simplifying services for the community were mentioned by officials as primary reasons for merging the city and county health departments.

Health Commissioner Steve Lonsinger, Mayor Mark Mills and Commissioner Dane Shryock sign contracts to merge the city and county health departments into the new Coshocton County Health District on Thursday at Coshocton City Hall. While residents should see little change in services, the merger will streamline services, improve efficiencies and eliminate confusion for citizens.

A contract for the unification and creation of the new Coshocton County Health District was signed Thursday at city hall by Mayor Mark Mills, Commissioner Dane Shryock and Steve Lonsigner, who will be health commissioner of the new district. The move was previously approved by Coshocton City Council, the Health District Advisory Council and both health boards. The DAC is staying in place and the city's mayor will be added to it. It features village mayors and township trustees now.

The collaboration had long been talked about and was confirmed as viable by a feasibility study released in March 2019.  Merger work started at that time, but was placed on the backburner because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The study said combining services would lead to increased efficiency and less confusion. For example, you had city residents going to the city health department looking for WIC, but that's a county run program. There was also perceived cost savings in combining utilities and staffs. There will be no changes in services offered and Lonsigner said the general public won't see any differences.

"The greatest benefit is that there will be no confusion. You will have one number to call. You will have one building to go to. And, basically, the same services as you had before," Mills said. "It's a win for ease of service and not duplicating services and streamlining a process that should have been done long ago."

The new health district will be housed at the former Hopewell building at 637 Chestnut St. Coshocton County Commissioners announced in January the building would be converted into new offices for the health department and the Coshocton County coroner. Lonsinger said renovations are being finished and personnel should be moved in by mid-January.

Commissioners previously said the former county officers in the Coshocton County Services Building would be used by agencies already in the building. Mills said they haven't decided what to do with the old city health department building on Browns Lane yet.

"We have to go through a lot of name changes and documentation, but logistically everything is in place," Lonsinger said on the switch over. "We don't have to setup any new funding streams."

Mills estimated the city would save from $200,000 to $250,000 a year. The city will be giving the district $150,000 in 2023 with a 3% increase each year for the next 10 years.

"On the city side, the financial savings and benefit to taxpayers of the city without losing any type of service to me is a homerun," Mills said. "There's no doubt in my mind that change is hard, but I think city residents will be well represented with the leadership at the county and the employees we're sending from the city."

Lonsinger said other revenue streams include permitting and licensing fees, grants, charitable donations and a portion of property taxes as set by the Coshocton County Budget Commission. Neither health department had any levies. Lonsigner said the COVID-19 pandemic skewed expenses, but things are starting to level off. The county health department's budget in 2019 was about $1 million.

The new health district is retaining 17 employees from the county health department and adding two from the city health department. Mills said of the other two employees, one is moving to another city department and the other is leaving city employment.

"For many years, we've been asked why are there two health departments," Lonsinger said. "By combining, we're definitely going to be able to offer better service and easier service to all residents."

Leonard Hayhurst is a community content coordinator and general news reporter for the Coshocton Tribune with more than 15 years of local journalism experience and multiple awards from the Ohio Associated Press. He can be reached at 740-295-3417 or llhayhur@coshoctontribune.com. Follow him on Twitter at @llhayhurst.

This article originally appeared on Coshocton Tribune: Health department merger streamlining services for residents