Stabenow, Peters Applaud CDC’s $90 Million Federal Investment in Michigan’s Public Health Workforce & Infrastructure

Federal Investment Will Provide Resources to Local Health Departments and Expand, Train and Modernize Michigan’s Public Health Workforce

Friday, December 02, 2022

DETROIT, MI – U.S. Senators Debbie Stabenow and Gary Peters applauded the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announcement that they will provide over $90 million in federal funding to strengthen and expand Michigan’s public health workforce, capacity and data systems. The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services will receive $81,900,324 and the Detroit Health Department will receive $9,248,900 through the CDC’s Strengthening U.S. Public Health Infrastructure, Workforce, and Data Systems grant program. Funding for the Public Health Infrastructure Grant Program is supported by the American Rescue Plan, legislation that Peters and Stabenow helped enact into law.

 

“Over the past couple years, our public health workforce has been challenged like never before,” said Senator Stabenow. “These funds will equip our local health departments with the staff and resources needed to provide critical public health services to our communities.”

 

“The past few years have reinforced how important it is to invest in our public health workforce and ensure our local health departments have the necessary resources to hire and train staff to meet Michiganders’ current needs and protect public health in the future.” said Senator Peters. “This federal funding, which I supported through the American Rescue Plan, will help ensure that Michigan has the people, services, and systems needed to keep families across our state healthy and safe.”

 

“This investment in public health will help the State of Michigan and the City of Detroit recruit, retain, and train a qualified workforce,” said Governor Whitmer. “I am so grateful to Senators Stabenow and Peters for continuing to fight for Michigan, ensuring we have the resources we need to keep our families and communities safe and healthy.”

 

“Thank you to Senator Peters, Senator Stabenow, the CDC and the Biden Administration for their efforts to deliver this critical funding, which is an excellent opportunity to enhance the foundation of the Detroit Health Department,” said Denise Fair Razo, Chief Public Health Officer for the City of Detroit. “This funding will allow us to provide greater services to our residents in many ways, including support of our initiatives to ensure equitable access to care. The Detroit Health Department is excited about this opportunity to enhance our ongoing work to create impactful, positive change in the lives of our residents.”

 

The first-of-its-kind funding provides flexible awards directly to state, local, and territorial health departments, to help ensure they have the staff, public health services, and systems they need to promote and protect health in their communities. It includes significant resources that awardees can use to recruit, retain, and train their workforce, including critical frontline public health workers such as epidemiologists, contact tracers, laboratory scientists, community health workers and data analysts. Additionally, state recipients are directed to award 40% of their workforce funds to local health departments who are not direct recipients.

 

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