DHSS promotes funding transparency, accountability through interactive dashboard and stories

January 23, 2023

Dashboard connects nearly $1.2 billion from 88 projects to House and Senate districts

The Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS) published a new dashboard at Health.Mo.Gov/funding that allows users to explore how nearly $1.2 billion in federal funding is benefiting Missourians. As legislative leaders began the budget process formally last week by hearing Governor Parson’s budget recommendations th­is dashboard will help explain where COVID-19 public health funding is headed by each House and Senate district, Missouri county and federal funding act. This public health dashboard compliments the statewide ARPA dashboard by showing funding from seven federal funding acts including ARPA, CARES Act and more.

“Public health is worth investing in,” said, Paula Nickelson, acting director of DHSS. “We know that with an increase in funding, we must also increase our ability to transparently reflect where that money is going and h ow it is benefiting Missourians. This influx of funding represents a unique, unprecedented opportunity to use short-term funding to enhance systems and impact the public’s health for generations.”

The dashboard is accompanied by five multimedia stories, which are the first five stories in a series that will highlight major innovations supported by this funding. Additional stories will be added over the next several months to showcase projects within local public health agencies, area agencies on aging and other critical partners.

The stories include:

  • Vital records: building a fully digital, comprehensive system for 112 years’ worth of records, including birth, death and marriage records.
  • Testing speed: new equipment automated manual processes, increased capacity and allowed for faster test results.
  • Disease monitoring: improved equipment combined with a new partnership with MU enhanced Missouri’s ability to track diseases and variants.
  • Closed-loop recycling program: created laboratory supplies during extreme supply chain disruptions by recycling 1,500 pounds of plastic waste.
  • Improving nutrition: Missouri WIC increased funding for fruits and vegetables, and will build a digital data dashboard.