Open AccessThe Impacts of Local Health Department Consolidation on Public Health Expenditures: Evidence From Ohio
Author(s) -
John Hoornbeek,
Michael Morris,
Matthew Stefanak,
Joshua Filla,
Rohit Prodhan,
Sharla A. Smith
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
american journal of public health
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.284
H-Index - 264
eISSN - 1541-0048
pISSN - 0090-0036
DOI - 10.2105/ajph.2014.302450
Subject(s) - health department , public health , consolidation (business) , business , environmental health , public administration , medicine , political science , finance , nursing
We examined the effects of local health department (LHD) consolidations on the total and administrative expenditures of LHDs in Ohio from 2001 to 2011. We obtained data from annual records maintained by the state of Ohio and through interviews conducted with senior local health officials and identified 20 consolidations of LHDs occurring in Ohio in this time period. We found that consolidating LHDs experienced a reduction in total expenditures of approximately 16% (P = .017), although we found no statistically significant change in administrative expenses. County health officials who were interviewed concurred that their consolidations yielded financial benefits, and they also asserted that their consolidations yielded public health service improvements.