ARRA, Case In Point

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 will distribute $787 billion across the country. Of that nearly incomprehensible total, $32,764 has just arrived at the St. Louis Health Department. Acting director Pam Walker says that she can do "a lot" in public health with that amount of money.

She tells me: "The focus of these funds will be Men and Latino health outreach and education. We will be testing, screening for HIV and STDs and providing hepatitis vaccinations through the Probation and Parole re-entry program, a conference on Latino health, and a conference on men’s health.'?

Somebody else can object to the billions. The tens of thousands are good hands.