Study: Ohio second to last in CDC funding

A study of Centers for Disease Control and Prevention spending has found that Ohio gets the second fewest dollars per capita of all 50 states (Source: “Ohio 49th in CDC health funding," Columbus Dispatch, March 11, 2009).

The analysis (pdf) by the Trust for America’s Health and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation calculated that Ohio got $12.76 per person in CDC spending in the 2008 federal spending year that ended in October. Indiana was the only state to get a lower per capita amount. On the other end of the spectrum, Alaska was given $52.78 per person.

A similar study of 2007 spending found that Ohio was given $15.06 per person in CDC funds.

Robert Jennings, a spokesman for the Ohio Department of Health said more analysis was needed to determine the validity of the new report’s finding.

"As we complete a review of the report, we would want to understand whether we are comparing apples to apples, because states report budgets in different ways, which makes comparisons across states a challenge. We're going to need to examine the full report to come up with answers on why Ohio ranks 49th," he said.