By Patricia Bogumil
Editor
The Town of Waterford Board approved an agreement Monday night to switch public health services in 2013 to ProHealth Care of Waukesha.
The new deal ends more than 20 years of public health services provided to town residents through the Western Racine County Health Department.
Waterford township is the second of 10 west end communities currently with Aurora/Western Racine to switch public health service providers next year.
In August, the Village of Union Grove signed with Central Racine County Health Department, based in Franksville, for 2013. Central Racine also serves the communities of Caledonia, Mt. Pleasant, Sturtevant and North Bay.
Dissatisfaction with climbing costs has been a prime motivating factor cited in the decisions to move away from Aurora/Western Racine.
Transparency problems in cost billings has also been a frequently mentioned concern over the years for Town of Waterford officials.
“It’s been getting way out of whack,” Waterford Town Chairman Robert Langmesser said Tuesday night in a telephone interview.
“Their prices keep going up, up, up and we can’t get a breakdown of what we’re paying for.”
Waterford township paid more than $41,000 to Aurora/Western Racine in 2011. Final charges for 2012 are not yet in, but will be well over $40,000, Town Supervisor Tom Hincz said.
The 2013 expenses for ProHealth Care services to Waterford township will be around $30,000.
“The only thing we’re doing is trying to save money for the taxpayers, and we can get the same services for less money. That’s what we’re doing,” Langmesser said.
Whether the exit of Waterford township and Union Grove from the Aurora/Western Racine system will result in higher future fees for the remaining municipalities is unclear.
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