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Cook County health system could get 19 percent less next year from local taxes Tuesday, September 15, 2009 Chicago Tribune by Hal Dardick An independent board created last year to clean
up Cook County’s vast public health system plans to significantly cut
its dependence on local taxes—but that’s unlikely to result in any
savings for county taxpayers.
The Cook County Board Finance
Committee voted 15-0 to approve a preliminary health system budget for
next year that includes a local tax subsidy of about $308 million. That
is $74 million---or 19 percent---less than approved for this year.
A vote by the full county board on the health budget is expected
Wednesday. If approved, County Board President Todd Stroger would be
obligated to include the same plan in his overall budget proposal for
next year, said Commissioner Larry Suffredin (D-Evanston).
The
health system budget accounts for nearly a third of the county’s annual
$3 billion budget. But Stroger is not expected to cut taxes in his new
budget proposal. He's resisted attempts to reduce the
penny-on-the-dollar tax increase he engineered last year.
Last
year, Suffredin got Stroger’s support to create the independent board
in exchange for Suffredin’s pivotal vote to increase the county sales
tax. Suffredin, who now wants to repeal the sales tax increase, says
the independent board, which started its work 14 months ago, is working
the way he envisioned.
“It is a success, and the new CEO is
exactly what we needed,” Suffredin said, referring to Chief Executive
Officer William Foley, who in recent months has assembled a new
management team to run the system.
Under the plan endorsed
today, the overall Health and Hospitals System budget would increase by
nearly $63 million, to about $954 million. The increased spending would
cover the costs to implement a strategic plan aimed at improving and
streamlining operations.
But those additional costs would be
more than covered by new revenue from successful efforts to increase
federal funding and improve billing, Foley said.
Meanwhile, the system expects to spend $164 million less in local tax revenue by the end of this year than it initially planned.
Next
year, the system expects $150 million in federal funds for treating the
poor. It also expects significant savings by maintaining lower staff
levels and group purchasing of supplies.
Despite having less
employees and lowering costs, the system is increasing preventive
health services, like mammographies and colonoscopies, Foley said.
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