Published: April 30, 2025
Bartow, Fla. (April 28, 2025) – The Citizens Healthcare Oversight Committee (COC) met on Friday, April 25, for its annual retreat. The COC monitors the spending of the indigent healthcare sales surtax fund, which funds local healthcare access programs such as the Polk HealthCare Plan.
“The goal for today is to develop and discuss situational awareness of challenges, opportunities and other factors impacting health care access in Polk County,” said Joy Johnson, Health and Human Services Administrator for Polk County. “Feedback from the COC will be taken into account for the strategic spend down plan and future health care planning investment strategies.”
Committee members heard updates on the financial health of the indigent healthcare surtax fund and discussions about Polk County’s community health investment projects, as well as contract and operational updates from Health and Human Services staff.
The COC also got a preview of a new website that Polk County has been developing with funding from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. The website compiles resources for behavioral health and substance abuse treatment in Polk County and will launch in May 2025.
In her closing comments, committee chair Stacy Campbell-Domineck, President and CEO of CareerSource Polk, thanked the group for contributing their experiences and perspectives to the day’s conversation.
The COC meets quarterly. A calendar of meetings can be found here. Meetings are open to the public and are livestreamed by PGTV.