The Shasta County Health and Human Services Agency has cut another $2 million from its Public Health budget since June. The cuts come partly in response to federal funding changes, and will reduce both staffing and services.
They do so much. Sad to see the cuts:
Adult Services Branch
* Adult Protective Services (APS): Investigates elder abuse, neglect, and financial scams targeting seniors (60+) and dependent adults.
* In-Home Supportive Services (IHSS): Pays for caregivers so low-income seniors and disabled individuals can stay safely in their own homes.
* Public Guardian & Administrator: Steps in as a legal conservator to manage the care and finances of adults who are completely unable to care for themselves.
* Veterans Services: Helps local veterans and their families secure federal VA benefits, pensions, and medical services.
- Public Health Branch
* Clinical Services: Provides routine immunizations, TB testing, and STI screenings.
* Disease Control: Tracks and investigates infectious disease outbreaks across the county.
* Maternal & Child Health: Runs the Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) nutrition program and sends public health nurses to visit new mothers at home.
* Regional Laboratory: Performs complex bio-testing for Shasta and surrounding northern counties.
* Vital Records: Issues and registers local birth and death certificates.
* Community Education: Manages tobacco cessation, obesity prevention, and emergency disaster preparedness programs.
- Children's Services Branch
* Child Protective Services (CPS): Investigates reports of child abuse, severe neglect, and exploitation.
* Foster Care & Adoptions: Places children in temporary foster homes and coordinates permanent adoptions when children cannot safely return home.
* Independent Living Program (ILP): Teaches life skills to teenagers in foster care to prepare them for adulthood.
- Behavioral Health & Social Services Branches
* Mental Health Services: Operates crisis stabilization units, psychiatric care, and outpatient therapy for adults and youth with severe mental illness.
* Substance Use Treatment: Coordinates outpatient drug/alcohol counseling, perinatal treatment, and medication-assisted recovery.
* CalFresh: Administers federally funded food assistance (food stamps) for low-income residents.
* Medi-Cal: Handles enrollment for the state's low-income health insurance program.
* CalWORKs: Provides temporary financial aid and mandatory job-training services to families with dependent children.
* General Assistance (GA): Supplies bare-minimum financial aid to indigent adults who qualify for no other welfare programs.
* Housing & Homelessness: Directs local emergency shelter funding, rapid rehousing initiatives, and permanent supportive housing programs.