Funding

Pennsylvania’s local health departments face funding challenges. According to the Trust for America’s Health, Pennsylvania’s state government invests just $19 per person per year for public health, which ranks 46 out of 50 states.

Pennsylvania’s Funding Laws

Pennsylvania's Local Health Administration Law, Act 315 of 1951, was enacted to improve public health throughout the state by authorizing the creation, establishment and administration of local health departments. The law was expanded in 1976, via Act 12.

Under Act 12, the Commonwealth is required to fund environmental health services such as:

  • Air and Noise Pollution Control

  • Restaurant and Wholesale Food Inspection

  • Rodent and Vector Control

  • Housing Code Enforcement

  • Air and Water Quality

  • Ground Contamination

  • Lead Poisoning

Under Act 315, local health departments may receive state funding for personal health services such as:

  • Primary Care

  • Immunizations

  • STD Testing and Services

  • Maternal and Child Health Services

  • Emergency Preparedness

  • Health Education

  • Laboratory Services

  • Public Health Policy Development

  • Epidemiology 

This funding, administered through the Pennsylvania Department of Health, can account for more than a quarter of a local health departments’ budgets. Today, Pennsylvania’s ten local health departments are responsible for the health of 46 percent of the state’s population.

Pennsylvania’s local health departments face shrinking budgets and expanding health service needs. Adjusted for inflation, Act 315 and Act 12 funding has decreased by 52 percent since 2004

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Reduced Services for Pennsylvania’s Communities

Pennsylvania’s disinvestment in public health mirrors national trends and has had disastrous consequences. In Pennsylvania, funding cuts have forced local health departments to cut programs and reduce services.

Increased and consistent funding for public health services is vital as we experience new emerging health threats including the COVID-19 pandemic; the opioid overdose epidemic; infectious disease outbreaks, including mumps, measles, tuberculosis, and hepatitis; rising levels of obesity; and reduced access to primary care for our most vulnerable residents.

Policy Priorities

  • State funding for public health must be increased and must reliably meet current and future needs of Pennsylvania’s population.