(a) To advise the County Executive and the County Council, the Commission must:
(1) Periodically review available County public health programs, services, and facilities and data on the health status of the County population and subgroups within it;
(2) Comment on gaps, deficiencies, or duplication in County public health programs, services, and facilities, including health status disparities and inequities;
(3) Report each year to the County Executive on the performance of the Health and Human Services Department’s public health programs, actions needed to improve the programs, and the priorities within which the improvements should be made;
(4) Comment on the proposed allocation of funds to County public health programs in accordance with the Department’s priorities, considering the available financial resources and the need for health cost containment;
(5) Advise on local public health planning needs based on health status data;
(6) Comment on the appropriateness of institutional health services proposed to be offered in the County and the metropolitan area by the private sector and nonprofit, state, or other public sector agencies;
(7) Advise on the development of statewide criteria and standards for certificates of need and health planning, considering the regional impact when appropriate.
(b) The Commission must report to and meet with the County Council, sitting as the County Board of Health, at least annually, on the programs and policies within its purview.
(c) To ensure its smooth and efficient functioning, the commission must adopt bylaws. (1988 L.M.C., ch. 32, § 2; 1995 L.M.C., ch. 13, § 1; , § 1.)
Editor’s note—See County Attorney Opinion dated discussing the extent and limits of the Commission on Health’s authority.
1995 L.M.C., ch. 13, § 5, reads as follows: “Sec. 5. A regulation that implements a function assigned to the Department of Health and Human Services by 1995 L.M.C., ch. 13, continues in effect but is amended to the extent necessary to provide that the regulation is administered by the Director of the Department of Health and Human Services.”
