Draft February Minutes — original pdf

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AUSTIN TRAVIS COUNTY PUBLIC HEALTH COMMISSION Wednesday, February 4th, 2025 AUSTIN TRAVIS COUNTY PUBLIC HEALTH COMMISSION REGULAR MEETING MINUTES Wednesday, February 4th, 2026 The Austin Travis County Public Health Commission convened in a regular meeting on Wednesday, February 4th, 2026, at 301 West 2nd Street in Austin, Texas. Chair Natalie Poindexter called the Austin Travis County Public Health Commission Meeting to order at 2:47 pm. Board Members/Commissioners in Attendance: Natalie Poindexter, Chair Jawad Ali Chris Crookham Jacob Whitty Board Members/Commissioners in Attendance Remotely: Enrique Lin Shiao, Vice Chair Cara Dahlhausen William Rice Board Members/Commissioners Absent: Martha Lujan Ex-Officio and Staff in Attendance: Dr. Desmar Walkes, Austin/Travis County Public Health Authority Perla Cavazos, Deputy Administrator, Central Health Ana Almaguel, Division Director, Travis County Health & Human Services Daniela Romero, Staff, Austin Public Health Ex-Officio and Staff in Attendance Remotely: Megan Cermak Juanita Jackson Ex-Officio and Staff Absent: Adrienne Sturrup PUBLIC COMMUNICATION: GENERAL Sharon Behill, CEO of Communities In Schools of Central Texas, advocated for the protection of prevention-focused social services amidst ongoing city budget cuts. She emphasized that school-based "upstream" interventions for student mental health and trauma are vital, cost- effective investments that prevent more expensive long-term crises in public safety and emergency systems. APPROVAL OF MINUTES 1. Approve the minutes of the Austin Travis County Public Health Commission regular meeting on February 4th, 2026. The minutes for the regular meeting of January 7th, 2026, were approved on Commissioner Jacob Whitty’s motion, Commissioner William Rice second on a 7-0 vote. (Absent: Commissioner Martha Lujan) DISCUSSION ITEMS 2. 3. Presentation by One Voice on impacts of federal funding cuts. Presentation by Sam Woollard, Peter Arellano and Lynne Skinner. Received updates from commissioners on assigned action items. External Coordination: Although absent, Commissioner Luhan is reportedly coordinating future discussions with the Public Safety Commission and Capital Metro. Sexual Health Funding: Efforts to secure data from Austin Public Health (APH) are ongoing. The Commission discussed postponing this item temporarily due to budget uncertainties or shifting the focus to qualitative outcomes rather than just funding. Member Updates: Brief updates were noted regarding recommendations from Commissioners Dahlhausen and Commissioner Crookham, which were slated for the subsequent agenda items. Refugee Clinic: Commissioner Ali introduced Refugee collective CEO to staff. Staff is coordinating presentations for next meeting. 4. Discussed draft recommendation “Bridging Public Health Funding” created by Commissioner Chris Crookham. Commissioner Chris Crookham presented a draft recommendation addressing the direct and indirect health inequities impacting East Austin residents due to the I-35 corridor. Commissioners and ex-officio members provided input focused on strengthening the proposal. Key suggestions included: (1) Incorporating specific statistical data and localized examples to bolster the recommendation, and (2) narrowing the focus to specific Austin Public Health (APH) and City programs directly affected by these inequities, rather than maintaining a broad scope. Commissioner Crookham will conduct further research into a comparable program in Dallas to inform the final version of the recommendation. 2 DISCUSSION AND ACTION ITEMS 5. Discussed and approved goals for the 2026 fiscal year. The Commission discussed and established five primary goals to guide their strategy and resource allocation for the upcoming fiscal year: Goal 1: Food Security & Collaboration: o Establish a collaborative partnership with the Austin Food Plan Advisory Board to address gaps in food access and resources without duplicating efforts. o Specific focus areas include "Food as Medicine" initiatives and mitigating the loss of summer food programs for youth. Goal 2: Data-Driven Recommendations & Academic Partnerships: o Strengthen relationships with UT Austin (including Dell Medical School and the Economics Department) to provide statistical backing for Commission recommendations. o Vice Chair and Commissioner Rice will lead efforts to use academic research to analyze the public health impacts of city policies. Goal 3: Refugee Health Equity: o Prioritize initiatives addressing health equity and access within local refugee communities, led by Commissioner Ali. Goal 4: Public Health Education & Awareness: o Increase community and inter-commission awareness of what constitutes "public health." o Strategies include monthly standing updates on health infrastructure and presenting public health perspectives to other city commissions (e.g., Public Safety). Goal 5: Economic Impact Monitoring & Internal Communication: o Analyze the public health consequences of social service funding cuts and misinformation. o Action Item: The Chair and staff (Danny) will develop a Public Health Newsletter specifically for Commissioners to provide regular updates on local health infrastructure and ground-level concerns. The Chair will develop logic models and timelines for these goals to be distributed by staff. While a formal vote was not taken, the items will be maintained as a rolling agenda to track progress through July 2026. 3 6. Approve a recommendation to Travis County Council titled “Harm Reduction Outreach Expansion”. The recommendation was approved on Commissioner Jacob Whitty’s motion, Commissioner William Rice second on a 7-0 vote. (Absent: Commissioner Martha Lujan) FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS 7. 8. 9. 10. Presentation by Refugee Collective Presentation by Communities In Schools of Central Texas (CIS) Newsletter update Discuss updated draft from Commissioner Chris FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS ADJOURNMENT Chair Natalie Poindexter adjourned the meeting at 4:12 p.m. without objection. 4