IDPH announces $3.7 million in federal funding for local health department partners

Posted on October 19, 2022
Illinois Department of Public Health director Dr. Sameer Vohra (center). (Facebook/Illinois Department of Public Health)

By Dave Dahl

SPRINGFIELD – The pandemic brought disparities in health care into a harsh spotlight, says Illinois Department of Public Health director Dr. Sameer Vohra. Help is on the way, he adds, in the form of $3.7 million in federal funds going to eighteen groups trying to close the gap.

Selena Stegeman of Quincy Medical Group, appearing at a news conference at the Capitol Tuesday, said the challenges include “poverty, food insecurity, lack of transportation, lack of access to health care and other resources, and gender and racial inequities. West central Illinois is experiencing all of these challenges.”

An IDPH news release lists “community collaborations with their local health department partners” which will share the federal funds.

• Lake County’s Black and Brown Coalition for Health Equity (Lake County Health Department)

• Engaging Alton for Equity (Madison County Health Department)

• Immigrant Cooperative (Champaign-Urbana Public Health District)

• Clay County Health 4 Generations Coalition (Clay County Health Department)

• ARISE for Will County (Will County Health Department)

• HEART (DuPage County Health Department)

• East Central Illinois Rural Healthcare Consortium (Ford County Health Department & Iroquois Health Department)

• Quincy ARISE Coalition (Adams County Health Department)

• ARISE Kankakee (Kankakee County Health Department)

• Effingham Health Committee (Effingham County Health Department)

• Juntos (McHenry County Health Department)

• Junior Medic LLC (Will County)

• YMCA of Metropolitan Chicago (Lake County)

• Zeta Phi Beta Sorority Inc, Kappa Sigma Zeta Chapter (Sangamon County)

• Coordinated Care Alliance (Alexander, Cass, Clay, Cumberland, Edwards, Fayette, Franklin, Greene, Hamilton, Hardin, Henderson, Jackson, Jefferson, Kane, Kankakee, Kendall, Lake, Lawrence, Marion, Massac, Pope, Pulaski, Saline, Shelby, Wayne, White, Will counties)

• Rainbow Cafe (Alexander, Edwards, Franklin, Hamilton, Hardin, Jackson, Jefferson, Kane, Massac, Pope, Pulaski, Saline, Wayne, White, Gallatin, Johnson, Perry, Randolph, Union, Williamson, Wabash counties)

• Community Unit School District 300 (Kane & McHenry counties)

• Islamic Alliance to Advance Health Equity in Lake County (IHEAL) (Lake County)

Dave Dahl can be reached at [email protected]

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