In this edition:
- Tips for winter prep ❄️
- New food code and fee schedule 🔍
- Marketplace enrollment is now open⚕️
- New service: temporary Medicaid access 🔓
- Speak up at community council event 🗣️
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Prepare Now for a Safe & Healthy Winter |
Cold can kill. As the temperatures gets lower and the risk for snow and ice increases, make sure your home and any vehicles are prepared!
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Prepare emergency supply kits for your car and home.
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Make sure your car is in good working condition. Check that your tires have good tread or install winter tires.
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Sign up for local alerts or follow authorities like your local National Weather Service branch, local news, and public safety agencies.
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Winterize your house by trimming trees, knowing where your water shutoff valve is, and testing your alarms. Keep cold air out by checking your attic insulation for repair needs and sealing pipe, door, and window cracks.
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Live in an apartment? Evaluate your outdoor space for anything that needs to come inside, and consider keeping a shovel on hand, in case you need to clear a parking space, doorway, or pathway.
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If you plan to or might use a generator this winter, purchase a battery-powered or battery backup carbon monoxide detector in your home.
- Make alternate plans for refrigerating medicines or using power-dependent medical devices, in case of a power outage.
- Connect with your neighbors! Be there for each other during extreme conditions, especially older adults, by checking in and exchanging contact info.
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Protect yourself and your family from germs that could make you feel icky, stop you from doing things you love, or even cause severe illness that puts you in the hospital. Use prevention strategies like vaccination, good hygiene, and keeping distance from anyone who is sick.
Want to keep informed about the spread of disease in our area? Here are a few links to bookmark and check throughout respiratory illness season.
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| Updates from Environmental Health |
Based on the most current best practices and feedback from operators, CCPHC's environmental health program has published the new Clay County Food Code. This updated document will go into effect January 1, 2026.
Click here to read a summary of changes.
Anyone who works with food establishments, recreational water facilities, or septic systems should also be aware of CCPHC's updated fees. This includes fees for operating permits, classes, re-inspections, plan review, and more.
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Attention current or potential users of the Health Insurance Marketplace® (healthcare.gov): there are lots of important things to be aware of when it comes to getting healthcare coverage in 2026.
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Enroll by December 15 if you want coverage to start on Jan. 1, 2026.
- You can also enroll by the deadline of January 15. Costs are lower when you sign up during open enrollment (Nov. 1, 2025-Jan. 15, 2026).
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Turn off auto-renewal! Many people get extra financial help (subsidies) in order to afford Marketplace's premiums. However, the subsidies are set to expire at the end of 2025. Re-evaluate which plan might work for you if Congress decides not to extend the subsidies in 2026.
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The prices offered on Marketplace now will seem very high. Prices will lower if the subsidies are extended BUT choose a plan that works for you with the current pricing, just in case.
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Update your Marketplace application any time your income, address, or household size changes. Starting with 2026 taxes, if you get more premium tax credit than you should, you may have to pay back the full amount. This could happen if your 2026 income is higher than what you first reported.
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| New Service: Helping Kids & Pregnant Women Get Temporary Medicaid |
Presumptive Eligibility can give eligible people temporary access to medical services and certain medications while their full Medicaid application is being processed.
Clay County Public Health is now able to make presumptive eligibility determinations for children under 19 and pregnant women. Call 816-476-4108 to make an appointment; no walk-ins, please.
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Registered nurses administer required and recommended vaccinations to middle and high schoolers in local schools throughout the year.
Parents/guardians should complete the online registration at least two weeks before their student's clinic.
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- Smithville Middle & High School - Dec. 4
- Excelsior Springs Middle & High School - Dec. 9
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Free dental screenings and fluoride varnish are offered at Clay County schools by registered dental hygienists.
Parents/guardians should return the consent form by clinic day (online option available at schools marked *) in order for your student to participate.
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Bell Prairie Elementary School - Dec. 1
- Warren Hills Elementary School - Dec. 2
- Clardy Elementary School - Dec. 4
- Topping Elementary School - Dec. 9*
- Liberty Oaks Elementary School - Dec. 11
- Gracemor Elementary School - Dec. 15*
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Don't see your child's school listed?
We might have already stopped by! No worries if you missed us, we'll probably be back next semester.
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- Program Manager of Accounting
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On Nov. 18, our community health team delivered car seats to various local organizations, including law enforcement, hospitals, and fire departments. The car seats will go to people they come across who have an urgent need, in order to keep kids safe on the roads.
Pictured, clockwise starting at top left: Gladstone Fire/EMS, Liberty Hospital Foundation, Excelsior Springs Hospital, and NKC Health.
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This project is/was funded in part by the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services Maternal Child Health (MCH) Services Contract # (DH220051068), and is/was supported by the Health Resources Services Administration (HRSA) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) under grant #B04MC52935, Maternal and Child Health Services for $12, 742,189, of which $0 is from non-governmental sources. This information or content and conclusions are those of the author and should not be construed as the official position or policy of, nor should any endorsements be inferred by HRSA, HHS or the U.S. Government.
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800 Haines Drive, Liberty, MO 64068
clayhealth.com | 816-595-4200
Through service, partnership, and leadership we deliver the essential public health services of prevention, promotion, and protection to improve the health and well-being of all communities in Clay County.
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