PROVIDENCE – Rhode Island’s total Centers for Disease Control and Prevention funding per capita was among the highest in the nation in fiscal 2016, according to a report released this week from Trust for America’s Health.
Trust for America’s Health, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization, released the information in its “A Funding Crisis for Public Health and Safety: State-by-State Public Health Funding and Key Health Facts, 2017” report.
The organization said it found that core funding for disease prevention and health promotion programs declined by approximately $580 million federally and has remained flat in states since 2010, while adjusting for inflation. It also said that cuts to federal funds have not been offset by increases to state and local funding.
In fiscal year 2016, the agency’s budget was $7.17 billion, equivalent to $22.26 per person.
It said approximately 75 percent of CDC’s funds go to support state and local programs, but support ranges from a low of $15.39 per person in Virginia to a high of $49.67 per person in Alaska.
Vermont was second-highest at $41.57 per person, and Rhode Island was third-highest at $39.59. Massachusetts was 20th at $23.43 per person.
The report calls for increased funding for public health, modernizing the public health system to address gaps in infrastructure and to update old systems and technology, and creating a standing Public Health Emergency Fund for immediate use when new threats emerge.
