Convening as the Navajo County Public Health District (NCPHSD) on Tuesday, Aug. 25, the board approved a five-year contract between Navajo County Public Health and the Arizona Department of Health Services (ADHS) for Rural Health Transformation funding (RHT), which will provide a yearly amount of $549,000, effective from June 1 of this year to May 31, 2030.
In a presentation provided by Health Director Janelle Linn, she explained that the RHT funding will be used to strengthen rural access, prevention, care coordination and long-term service sustainability. In a breakdown of fund usage, Linn stated, “Eighty-six percent of our funds that were allocated to us by the state have to be used on chronic disease measures, then 14% on maternal child health, specifically identifying and addressing congenital syphilis.”
Linn presented on the goals for the project, as well as plans to sustain the work being done after financial supplementation from RHT has ended.
Implementation will begin by using county employees as a pilot group. Investing care gaps, social needs and screenings for chronic disease will be followed by connecting employees with preventive care, benefits and education. The results will be tracked and measured. “From a county perspective, this gives us proof of concept to measure our reach, resolve barriers, appropriately utilize funds and develop long-term value prior to rolling this out into a community model,” she explained.
Once it is ready to be applied communitywide, the program will provide simpler pathways for receiving care. “Our role is not just to make a referral, it’s to help connect people to care, to follow up, and to document whether the needs are actually being resolved, so that we can make data informed decisions as we further this important work.”
Linn also touched on how the district is collaborating with tribal partners and how tribal entities can apply for non-competitive funding from RHTF.
Work on the program has already begun, with the hiring of two new staff members and a contract currently underway with a company to gather data.
While still convened as the NCPHSD, the board received a presentation on the 2026 Navajo County Community Health Assessment (CHA) Report, which provides a comprehensive overview of the county’s current health status, community-identified priorities and factors that are affecting the health and well-being of county residents.
CHA is conducted every three years in partnership with Summit Healthcare and Little Colorado Medical Center and is the foundation of the County’s Community Health Improvement Plan (CHIP).
Data was collected through focus groups conducted in the fall of 2025 and a Community Health Needs Assessment Survey (CHNAS) February through May of this year. “We asked about health needs, barriers to services and what residents feel should be the priorities in their communities,” explained Project Services Manager Sherry Fish.
The survey had 1,750 residents respond, but it was noted that survey findings do not statistically represent the entire population, only those residents that participated. “And that’s why we don’t rely on survey data alone.” Fish explained that the survey data is paired with countywide health data in order to create a complete picture.
Deputy Health Director Ciera Hensley walked through the results for the board, revealing with the number one health priority for survey respondents was access to care. “Data from our survey showed that 69% said that shortage of specialists was the top barrier to accessing community health resources. Sixty-eight percent said they had to travel more than 40 miles for needed healthcare services, and 27% said a lack of providers accepting new patients was a reason that prevented them from getting needed healthcare services.”
“While residents are telling us that access is difficult, the provider data shows that we are moving in the right direction,” Hensley explained, adding that provider ratios have improved in dental care (one per 2,011 to one per 1,902), primary care (one per 1,240 to one per 1,013), pediatric care (one per 2,363 to one per 1,710) and mental health care (one per 2,806 to one per 2,085 ) from 2022-2025.
Another priority found in the survey was mental health. Seventy-three percent of CHNAS respondents said anxiety or depression affects their daily lives, or the daily lives of someone in their family. “Loneliness was also identified by survey respondents as the top social concern in our county. This is consistent with our 2023 results.” Hensley referenced a participant who stated that they waited six months for an in-person care provider for a mental health crisis.
During the 2023 assessment, a priority that was identified was substance use. As a result of this, Narcan distribution increased throughout the county as well as the hiring of a substance use case manager/peer support specialist.
Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs) were also highlighted as a priority from the previous CHA. “This continues to be a significant concern in our county. Navajo County has the highest STI incident rate in the state.”
A work group within the health district collaborated with hospitals, providers, healthcare organizations and tribal nations to make a big impact on this issue. “Congenital syphilis reached a peak in 2022, but by 2024, the rate had decreased by about 60% from that peak,” stated Hensley, going from 885 to 500 per 100,000 live births.
Another priority that came from the most recent CHA was senior health and aging services. Falls were found to be the leading cause of accidental deaths in the county for residents 65 and older, with 19 accidental fall deaths occurring in 2024. Among the survey respondents who needed Alzheimer’s care, 54% did not receive it, furthering highlighting the need for senior services. “This tells us we need to think beyond just healthcare alone and consider caregiving housing, transportation, assisted living and the ability for our residents to age within their own community,” stated Hensley.
Other changes of note that were found in the CHA results showed that the life expectancy for county residents decreased from 77 to 68.1 from 2023-2026. A 41% increase for the cost-of-living wage also occurred, going from $15.79 to $22.26 per one adult. “At the same time we also had an improvement in kindergarten vaccination rates,” stated Hensley, which saw an increase in vaccination rates from 3% to 9.1%.
Next steps following these CHA results now that the assessment stage is complete, will be planning for the CHIP 2026 to 2027, “The CHIP is where we take what we learned, identify the issues our community will work on together, determine strategies, bring partners to the table and establish ways to measure progress.”
The board also received an annual report from the Navajo County Emergency Management & Preparedness. Emergency Management and Preparedness Director Catrina Jenkins, during which she explained the mission areas of emergency management. Jenkins encouraged residents to sign up for the county’s alert system, which can be found on the county’s website. “This alert system allows us to inform our residents, businesses and community members, as well as visitors of any incident that may be happening and the instructions that might be lifesaving for them.” She also presented a proclamation to declare the month of September as National Preparedness Month 2026, which the board approved. “National Preparedness Month provides an opportunity to highlight the importance of taking proactive steps before an emergency occurs and to recognize the shared role residents, communities, and first responders play in strengthening resilience,” Jenkins read.
Convening as the Navajo County Public Health Services District, the board:
* Approved the amended agreement between Randox Laboratories & NCPHSD-Medical Examiner for an address change to the new Code Enforcement building, located at 1121 W. Pinedale Road, suite B in Taylor. This address needed to be updated in the contract, with no other changes.
* Approved an amendment to the Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA) between Winslow and Navajo County Animal Care & Control for animal shelter services to increase the number of animal holding kennels available to Navajo County Animal Care & Control. The expansion would provide four additional kennels, increasing the total available kennel capacity to 13 kennels. The increase required an additional $1,300 per month, resulting in an annual increase of $15,600.
* Approved an IGA amendment for Women, Infants and Children (WIC) and breastfeeding peer counseling services between Navajo County and the Arizona Department of Health Services. The WIC Program is 100% federally funded, with funding increasing from $594,273 in Federal Fiscal Year (FFY) 2026 to $603,595 in FFY 2027 to offset expense of increased client numbers. No major changes have been made to the scope of work.
