As part of the Louisiana Restaurant Association's advocacy activities, we work in collaboration
with state entities that regulate and have oversight for our industry. Last
year, we passed an updated permit fee initiative for all foodservice
establishments in Louisiana, working in close association with the Department
of Health and Hospitals (DHH). We planned this modest fee change for over 18
months and had gained the assurance from the Governor's office that if the bill
passed, he would sign it into law. (This is one of the few fee bills Governor
Jindal has signed during his term.)
The funds generated were dedicated to maintaining our state's
outstanding record of food safety in our restaurants, catering operations,
convenience stores, hotels and other permit holders. We asked the DHH to add a
new position that would provide outreach to the industry while carrying this
feedback to the field sanitarian staff to ensure more consistency in site
visits and reporting. In addition, they committed to add several new sanitarian
supervisors around the state that could provide additional follow-up when a
permit holder had an issue with their assigned sanitarian. Another enhancement
to the DHH system will be their installation of an upgraded field reporting
program that will be consistent across the state.
We are circulating this electronic survey request from the DHH for
LRA members to complete. Mr. Scott Green of DHH, who serves as their quality
control liaison, will be reviewing the responses and then meeting with the
Chief Sanitarian and Assistant Secretary to assess how the industry thinks they
are meeting their responsibilities.
Please click HERE to access the survey. It should only take a few
minutes to complete. Your responses will be anonymous and used to assist the
DHH in measuring how they are doing and what they can improve on.
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