Public Health - What are your county taxes paying for?

Through a series of articles I plan to explore each of the departments within Sauk County government in order to help residents better understand the services offered in exchange for your tax dollars. For this installment I decided to focus on Public Health. I sat down with Beverly Muhlenbeck, Director of the Sauk County Public Health Department.

Public health is as diverse as it sounds. Muhlenbeck and the 17 professional staff tackle a variety of issues ranging from environmental health issues (like lead, molds/mildews and radon) to home care, to foot clinics, to communicable diseases, to immunizations, to tobacco cessation programs, to programs like Women, Infants and Children (WIC). The WIC program offers nutrition information and counseling as well as vouchers for healthy food to pregnant women and children under 5 who are financially eligible.

When I asked Muhlenbeck about emerging health issues she mentioned the growing need for dental care for children in low-income families. The UW Hospital Ronald McDonald care mobile visits Sauk County 2 times a year and they provide dental care for 25-50 kids. Unfortunately many families don't have the opportunity to take advantage of this program, and Muhlenbeck would like to reach out to those families.

I asked Muhlenbeck which programs she felt were underutilized by Sauk County residents and two programs jumped out: the fluoride and the acute illness voucher programs. Through the fluoride program county residents that drink private well water can purchase fluoride tablets at the cost of four dollars ($4) for a three months supply to help prevent tooth decay. Most communities with municipal water systems already add fluoride to the water, but some villages like Ironton do not provide this service. The second program that Muhlenbeck mentioned was the acute illness voucher program. This program provides funding for uninsured patients that are suffering from an acute (ie, any type of infections, breaks, rashes) illness.

by Jenny Erickson, Sauk County UW-Extension Community Development Educator