The Suffolk County Legislature on Tuesday accepted nearly $7 million in grant funding to help boost the health department’s COVID-19 public health response.
The health department will hire 35 public health fellows to expand its workforce for one year through the grant, awarded by Health Research Inc., according to Jennifer Culp, a health department official, and a legislative resolution. The county will recruit and deploy New York Public Health Corps fellows to investigate COVID-19 clusters, trace cases, staff vaccine pods and test wastewater for coronavirus cases, Culp said.
Fellows will help conduct epidemiological “research into how we have fared in this pandemic,” including examining vaccination rates by geography, Culp said. There is currently no staff epidemiologist, she said.
Other fellows may work in public health areas affected by COVID-19: chest diseases, sexually transmitted illnesses and opioid addiction.
Legis. Kara Hahn (D-Setauket) called the lack of a staff epidemiologist “concerning.”
“That’s a position our health department should have full time and something we should make sure continues,” Hahn said.
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