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| Line Item | Description | FY01 | FY05 | H1 for FY06 | House Budget for FY06 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4510-0600 | Environmental Health Services | 3,947,284 | 3,146,865 | 3,187,661 | 3,185,321 |
| 4512-0103 | AIDS Prevention, Treatmt. & Svcs. | 49,569,025 | 33,344,099 | 34,697,303 | 35,297,303 |
| 4512-0106 | HIV Rebates (Ret. Rev.) | 1,200,000 | 1,900,000 | 1,900,000 | 1,900,000 |
| 4512-0500 | Dental Health Services | 1,305,021 | 1,556,150 | 1,556,150 | 1,678,150 |
| 4512-0501 | Tufts Dental Prog. Equip. | -- | 0 | -- | -- |
| 4512-1300 | Family Planning Services | 977,344 | 0 | -- | -- |
| 4513-1000 | Family Health Services | 12,775,715 | 7,010,000 | 8,332,196 | 7,652,196 |
| 4513-1002 | WIC Nutrition Services | 13,927,265 | 12,571,048 | 12,859,601 | 12,859,601 |
| 4513-1010 | Early Intervention (Ret. Rev.) | 2,414,628 | 2,700,050 | 2,700,050 | 2,700,050 |
| 4513-1012 | WIC (Ret. Rev.) | 22,513,925 | 23,230,000 | 24,076,000 | 24,076,000 |
| 4513-1020 | Early Intervention | 29,663,816 | 29,270,778 | 29,840,024 | 29,840,024 |
| 4513-1021 | Early Intervention Respite Srvcs. | 414,663 | 0 | -- | -- |
| 4513-1023 | Newborn Hearing Screening | 83,085 | 83,060 | 83,060 | 83,060 |
| * Final FY05 numbers include Prior Appropriations continued in the September FY04 supplemental budget. | |||||
This chapter focuses on the House of Representatives’ FY06 budget recommendations for programs serving persons with disabilities within the Massachusetts Department of Public Health (MDPH). For additional information on the impacts of FY01–FY05 budget cuts and more details about program services, go to the People First website at www.mass.gov/mddc/peoplefirst/index.html and click on the MDPH chapter in the Volume I table of contents.
HOUSE BUDGET OVERVIEW
No Restoration for MDPH
The House budget funds MDPH with $417.24 million. This amount is just $11.24 million (2.7 %) more than the FY05 budget and $7.12 million more than in H1 for FY06.1 To put these numbers in context, the FY05 MDPH budget is currently 23% below that for FY01, unadjusted for inflation.
Line Item Analysis
Account: Environmental Health
Line Item: 4510-0600
The Environmental Health account funds: the Division of Food and Drugs; the Radiation Control Program; the Bureau of Environmental Health Assessment; the Community Sanitation Program; and the Renal Disease Program. The Bureau of Environmental Health Assessment’s services include the tracking or surveillance of important diseases such as childhood asthma, cancers, and lead poisoning. Low-income children are disproportionately exposed to lead poisoning, as they more often live in older housing.
| Line Item | Description | FY01 | FY05 | H1 for FY06 | House Budget for FY06 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4510-0600 | Environmental Health Services | 3,947,284 | 3,146,865 | 3,187,661 | 3,185,321 |
FY06 Needs
Between FY01–FY04, funding for this line item was cut 37%, with 33% of all funded positions eliminated—a loss of both infrastructure and expertise. The cuts impact services required by statute and provided by the Division of Food and Drugs, Bureau of Environmental Health Assessments, Radiation Control, and the Community Sanitation Program. Restoration funding is urgently needed.
House Budget Recommendations
Neither the House budget nor H1 for FY06 recommend any restoration funding. The House budget recommends $58,465 above the FY05 funding, a below-maintenance increase of 1.85%.
Account: HIV/AIDS Bureau
Line Items: 4512-0103 and 4512-0106
The HIV/AIDS Bureau is funded through 2 separate accounts. Line 4512-0103 funds: HIV/AIDS Counseling and Testing Services; HIV/AIDS Specialty Care Services; HIV/AIDS Client Support Services; Prevention and Education Services; and Substance Abuse Services. Line 4512-0106, a retained revenue account collecting federal financial participation (ffp), funds the HIV Drug Assistance Program (HDAP, which also receives funds through line item 4512-0103), to pay for lifesaving AIDS medications for income-eligible people who are under- or uninsured.
| Line Item | Description | FY01 | FY05 | H1 for FY06 | House Budget for FY06 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4512-0103 | AIDS Prevention, Treatmt. & Svcs. | 49,569,025 | 33,344,099 | 34,697,303 | 35,297,303 |
| 4512-0106 | HIV Rebates (Ret. Rev.) | 1,200,000 | 1,900,000 | 1,900,000 | 1,900,000 |
| Totals, HIV/AIDS Bureau: | 50,769,025 | 35,244,099 | 36,597,303 | 37,197,303 | |
FY06 Needs
Advocates are asking for an additional $5.1 million for line item 4512-0103 in FY06 to fund $3.1 million for HDAP, to cover the rise in HIV infections (1,000 new infections per year), and $1.9 million for Education and Prevention, Treatment, and Support Services.
House Budget Recommendations
The House budget recommends just $1,953,204 (5.5%) above the FY05 allocation in line item 4512-0103. H1 for FY06 proposes an increase of $1,353,204 (4.1%). MDPH reports that $1.086 million of the increase is maintenance funding for HDAP, to continue supporting the 4,000 clients projected by the end of FY05. At this funding level, it is likely that new enrollees in FY06 will have to be placed on a waiting list for life-sustaining drugs.
Account: Dental Health
Line Item: 4512-0500
The Dental Health account funds the Office of Oral Health, which provides public education and dental care for people who are court-mandated and for people with developmental disabilities.
| Line Item | Description | FY01 | FY05 | H1 for FY06 | House Budget for FY06 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4512-0500 | Dental Health Services | 1,305,021 | 1,556,150 | 1,556,150 | 1,678,150 |
| 4512-0501 | Tufts Dental Prog. Equip. | -- | 0 | -- | -- |
FY06 Needs
Advocates are working to bring water fluoridation to all Massachusetts communities with public water supplies serving more than 5,000 residents. The state ranks 35th in the nation for fluoridation.
House Budget Recommendations
The House budget recommends an additional $122,000 above the FY05 funding level.
Account: Family Health Services
Line Items: 4512-1300 and 4513-1000
The Family Health Services account funds Primary Care Programs for Pregnant Women, Children, and Adolescents (and a number of other programs, not discussed here). These programs provide primary care to more than 130,000 persons in 40 sites serving low-income and/or medically underserved communities across the state. Federal Maternal and Child Health funds also support these programs.
| Line Item | Description | FY01 | FY05 | H1 for FY06 | House Budget for FY06 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4512-1300 | Family Planning Services | 977,344 | 0 | -- | -- |
| 4513-1000 | Family Health Services | 12,775,715 | 7,010,000 | 8,332,196 | 7,652,196 |
| Totals: | 13,753,059 | 7,010,000 | 8,332,196 | 7,652,196 | |
FY06 Needs
Advocates are seeking a $1.8 million increase for line item 4513-1000 in order to earmark $6 million for family planning. They also would like to see $400,000 of this money earmarked for HIV counseling and testing services for at-risk family planning program participants.
House Budget Recommendations
The House budget recommends a small increase of just $680,000 (9.7%), compared with the much larger increase of $1,322,196 (15.8%) proposed in H1 for FY06.
Account: Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women,
Infants, & Children
(WIC)
Line Items: 4513-1002 and 4513-1012
The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, & Children
(WIC) program is a joint
state-funded and federally-funded program. Line item 4513-1012 is a retained
revenue account for federal matching funds the program generates. WIC
provides supportive services and checks to buy protein rich food to low-
and moderate-income pregnant, breastfeeding and postpartum women; infants;
and children up to age five who are certified as medically or nutritionally
at-risk.
| Line Item | Description | FY01 | FY05 | H1 for FY06 | House Budget for FY06 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4513-1002 | WIC Nutrition Services | 13,927,265 | 12,571,048 | 12,859,601 | 12,859,601 |
| 4513-1012 | WIC (Ret. Rev.) | 22,513,925 | 23,230,000 | 24,076,000 | 24,076,000 |
| Totals: | 36,441,190 | 35,801,048 | 36,935,601 | 36,935,601 | |
FY06 Needs
MDPH has established the need for a $1.1 million increase to the 4513-1002 account in FY06 for an anticipated 5% inflationary rise in food expenses, particularly the price of milk. An additional $846,000 is requested for line item 4513-1012 for a 5% increase in the cost of infant formula.
House Budget Recommendations
Both the House budget and H1 for FY06 provide $12,859,601 for line item 4513-1002, a $288,533 (2.3%) increase over FY05 funding. It is essentially level funding, because the new money is for continuing the POS Salary Reserve initiative first funded through a separate account in FY05. Both budgets, however, also increase the ceiling on the WIC retained revenue account (line item 4513-1012) by $846,000. The combined funding would cover an average monthly caseload of 120,555.
Account: Early Intervention
Line Items: 4513-1010, 4513-1020, 4513-1021
The Early Intervention (EI) accounts fund a statewide, comprehensive, developmental service available to families of children from birth to age 3 who have or are at risk for developmental delays. MDPH estimates the FY05 caseload will reach 30,294 persons (6.5% more than in FY04).
| Line Item | Description | FY01 | FY05 | H1 for FY06 | House Budget for FY06 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4513-1010 | Early Intervention (Ret. Rev.) | 2,414,628 | 2,700,050 | 2,700,050 | 2,700,050 |
| 4513-1020 | Early Intervention | 29,663,816 | 29,270,778 | 29,840,024 | 29,840,024 |
| 4513-1021 | Early Intervention Respite Srvcs. | 414,663 | 0 | -- | -- |
| Totals: | 32,493,107 | 31,970,828 | 32,540,074 | 32,540,074 | |
FY06 Needs
MDPH has established the need for a $558,000 increase in line item 4513-1020 in FY06—$384,994 is for an anticipated FY06 increase in costs for services to children with autism spectrum disorders and $173,006 is for FY06 caseload growth. Advocates are requesting a $2 million increase to line item 4513-1020 in FY06, earmarked for program enhancement (not caseload growth). The funds are needed for services—such as translator services and parent/family liaisons—that have been cut in recent years. In total, advocates seek $31,188,130 for line item 4513-1020 in FY06. Advocates also call for the program to remain at MDPH and not to be moved into the new Department of Early Education and Care, to ensure that insurance providers continue to be able to reimburse for medically necessary services.
House Budget Recommendations
Both the House budget and H1 for FY06 propose $569,246 (1.9%) above FY05 funding. The program would remain at MDPH and not be consolidated into the new DEE&C. MDPH reports that $558,000 of this money would allow the program to serve 31,764 children—a 5% increase over the projected caseload of 30,251—during FY06. About 70% of the funding beyond that for caseload increases will support specialty services for children with autism, and 30% will cover the general EI direct services caseload increase. An additional new $11,246 is for continuing the POS Salary Reserve initiative first funded through a separate account in FY05.
Account: Universal Newborn Hearing Screening
Line Item: 4513-1023
The Universal Newborn Hearing Screening account funds the tracking, notification, and followthrough of newborns with potential hearing disorders to families, primary care providers, and early intervention programs. Since passage of a 1998 statute, hearing screenings are required prior to a newborn’s discharge from a hospital or birthing center.
| Line Item | Description | FY01 | FY05 | H1 for FY06 | House Budget for FY06 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4513-1023 | Newborn Hearing Screening | 83,085 | 83,060 | 83,060 | 83,060 |
House Budget Recommendations
Both the House budget and H1 for FY06 recommendations provide level funding only.
1. This information is provided by the Massachusetts Public Health Association. Experienced budget trackers will be interested in knowing that these figures do not include a $6 million retained revenue account for school health services that was included in the FY05 and H1 for FY06 budgets, but had not been included in prior years. Typically, the state does not collect revenue nor spend from this account anyway.
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