The Middletown Press (Middletown, CT)
Health district seeks more funds
Agency cites pandemic, requests more money from Portland and other members
Russell S. Melmed, director of the Chatham Health District, proposed member towns use some of the first round of federal stimulus funding to support the agency.
PORTLAND — Having shouldered “a significant portion of coronavirus costs” for its member towns, the Chatham Health District is now asking for additional funding.
Health Director Russell S. Melmed said he is asking for “a one-time midyear additional allocation” that would “help assure that we can continue to provide the level of services our communities require and deserve.”
Approval of the health district’s request “will allow us to stabilize our budget” from the COVID-19 disruption, Melmed said in a letter to the chief executives of the member towns.
If he were successful in his request, the funds would not come directly from town’s approved budgets.
Six towns make up the district: Colchester; East Haddam; East Hampton; Hebron; Marlborough; and Portland.
Instead, Melmed is proposing the towns use a portion of funds they received in the first round of federal stimulus funding.
Each community in the state received funding from the $75 million Municipal Coronavirus Relief Fund.
Melmed has asked that the town’s contribute 20 percent of their CRF funds to tide the district over just as is ramping up to offer coronavirus vaccines.
For East Hampton, 20 percent of the CRF would be $19,368. For Portland, it would total $13,336.
East Hampton Town Manager David E. Cox brought the matter to the Town Council’s attention during their regular meeting this week.
Portland First Selectwoman Susan S. Bransfield said she has made the members of the Board of Selectmen aware of Melmed’s request.
“We will discuss this request from the Chatham Health District at the selectmen’s financial meeting” on Feb. 3, she said Wednesday.
During a conversation, Bransfield signaled her support for Melmed’s request.
“I am very appreciative of the efforts of the Health District,” she said, noting the Health District “is coordinating clinics,” (including one scheduled to take place early next week in Portland) and other corona-related services and doing all the contract tracing.”
“They are doing a fantastic job,” Bransfield said.
In his email to the chief executives, Melmed underscored what Bransfield said.
“For most of the last nine months, my time and the time of my staff has been largely focused on COVID-19 response activities,” Melmed said.
“Including public community testing, distributing PPE…conducting contract tracing, expanding access to community testing, clarifying and enforcing Executive
Orders and DECD (Department of Economic and Community Development) Sector Rules, supporting day cares and our school district, providing guidance to small businesses, and directly engaging in operations planning for municipal departments such as libraries, senior centers, transfer stations and town halls,” Melmed said.
The state’s municipalities have the entire 2021 calendar year in which to allocate funds from the CFR, Bransfield said.
When the member towns were first approached by Melmed seeking the additional funding, the towns in turn sought a clarification from the state Office of Policy and Management.
In response, OPM said, “In recognition of the particular importance of public health and public safety workers to State, local, and tribal government responses to the public health emergency, [the U.S. Department of the] Treasury has provided, as an administrative accommodation, that a State, local, or tribal government may presume that public health and public safety employees meet the substantially dedicated test.”