Spare DPH budget from cut – Villagomez

While the House Ways and Means Committee has already pledged to look for funds to make sure that basic health programs are not jeopardized, Public Health Secretary Joseph Kevin Villagomez has appealed to legislators to maintain the agency’s current budget.

With the tight budget, Villagomez said the department has been trying to maximize federal grants to offset the cost of implementing certain programs.

Recently, the Atlanta-based Center for Disease Control and Prevention has granted the CNMI some $206,608 for its tobacco program. The federal agency was impressed with the goals set up for CNMI’s Tobacco Comprehensive State Plan for 1999-2000 program year, including implementation of long-term health care services for citizens in the Northern Marianas.

In a recent meeting with lawmakers, the public health chief informed them that the department does not want any disruption in its Medicaid and medical referral programs.

“We will try our best to live within what the Governor has submitted for fiscal year 2000. We will not ask for other things except that,” said Villagomez.

While it is difficult to run a medical facility with limited funding, he said the department recognizes the need to cut down on government spending with the decline in revenue brought about by Asia’s financial crisis.

A huge amount of money for medical referral program has been saved with the hiring of specialists from the mainland, but some of the cases that they have recently for treatment in U.S. hospitals have been serious illnesses which are very expensive. For example, one recent medical referral cost the department $250,000.

Earlier, the department was looking at the possibility of carrying out a seven-hour work per day schedule among the administrative staff and savings from which will be tapped to purchase medical supplies.

Eighty percent of the $33.9 million budget will go to salaries of personnel alone, while the remaining amount will be spent for operations.

At the same time, the department has implemented a freeze in hiring of non-medical personnel. Likewise, purchase of medical equipment will be made depending on the need of the Commonwealth Health Center.

The $33.9 million budget for Fiscal 2000 is the same amount which the department received this year, reflecting a 13.4 percent budget cut carried out by the Office of Management and Budget due to shrinking revenues.

Rep. Karl T. Reyes, chair of the House Ways and Means Committee, is looking into the possibility of providing greater flexibility to each department and agency to allow them to handle their own finances.

Amid limited budget, the Legislature is also likely to grant full reprogramming priority to cabinet members so they can realign money where it is needed most.

DPH, for example, can use funds set aside for the hiring of additional personnel to implement other health programs in the community.