Cook County Health CEO Israel Rocha answers questions during a county board committee meeting Oct. 31, 2023. [Livestream]

Cook County commissioners received information about the county health and hospitals system’s use of staffing agencies to temporarily fill organizational vacancies during a joint hearing of the County Finance and Health and Hospitals committees Tuesday.

Outgoing Cook County Health (CCH) CEO Israel Rocha told commissioners, similar to a budget hearing last week, that while vacancies continue to present a challenge to CCH and agency spending is higher than the system would like, some progress has been made.