The Lake County Board of Commissioners gave final approval to Health First Indiana funds and an updated tax sale ordinance in separate 3-0 votes Wednesday.
The commissioners approved two contracts totaling more than $300,000 as part of the $4.87 million the county received in state funding for the health department as part of the Health First Indiana initiative, which was created in 2023 by the Indiana legislature. The goal is to improve the overall health of Hoosier, a metric where the state consistently ranks among the worst in the nation.
The board approved contracts with The Food Bank of Northwest Indiana for $199,760 to expand pantry packs for mental health and maternal child health boxes and to install an overheard refrigerated locker system at the Lake County Health Department.
The commissioners also approved a contract with Indiana University School of Medicine for $102,710 to educate Lake County residents on chronic disease prevention and improve health through providing health screenings and referrals for care.
The two contracts were approved by the Lake County Health Board in September, said Health First Indiana initiative manager for the Lake County Health Department Michelle Arnold. Under state law, contracts have to be approved by the commissioners 30 days after the health board approves the contracts, she said.
The health board approved eight contracts, totaling more than $750,000 at its November meeting, Arnold said. The majority of the funds are for Gary Harm Reduction, which was approved to receive $261,800; Franciscan Health, which was approved to receive $128,000 for its Lake County Community Health Worker Program; and Geminus, which was approved to receive $125,000 for its crisis intervention team.
The eight contracts will likely be added to the commissioners’ December agenda for final approval, she said.
Repay said the commissioners will be approving future Health First Indiana contracts as the health board approves them.
“We’re adding them incrementally,” Repay said. “I expect we’ll continue to add different entities.”
In other moves, the county tax sale ordinance was amended to include a 25% penalty if a tax sale buyer doesn’t file a court order to issue a tax deed signed by a judge within 150 days of the court order to the Lake County Auditor’s office.
Auditor’s office attorney Randy Willey told the Lake County Council earlier this month that the office would like the 150-day deadline with the penalty put into the ordinance because currently not everyone comes to the office to file the signed tax deed. The council approved the ordinance at its Nov. 12 meeting.
Commissioner Michael Repay, D-3rd, said he voted in favor of the ordinance because it ensures a fair tax sale process.
“To the extent we can prevent people from gaming the system, we’re all for it,” Repay said.
akukulka@post-trib.com
