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and are minimal wage earners. These clients would have to walk to a bus stop, wait for the <br /> bus, take the bus, and then walk another 15 minutes to the facility, and then wait for the <br /> appointment. He said that this would require a whole day off just to attend a dental clinic. He <br /> understands that the current process is not working, but this seems to be shifting the cost <br /> burden from the service provider to the people receiving the service. <br /> Rosemary Summers said that this is not the ideal solution and the BOH knows that, but <br /> what they are doing now is not efficient for either staff or patients. <br /> Commissioner Gordon said that the only alternative recommended here for people in <br /> the southern part of the County would be to take the bus to Hillsborough. She said that there <br /> are other options here, but they are not being recommended and she asked why these were <br /> not considered. It seems like we are leaving patients in Chapel Hill and Carrboro on their own. <br /> Rosemary Summers said that those options were not recommended because the two <br /> primary safety net providers — Piedmont Health Services and UNC Dental School — do not <br /> have the capacity to take care of these additional patients. Also, these providers would only <br /> provide services if they were fully reimbursed. She said that the options are still available, but <br /> the question is whether the County wants to pay for the provision of the services in addition to <br /> keeping dental services. <br /> Frank Clifton said that there is a Para-transit system, and people who are Medicaid <br /> qualified are qualified to use that system on a call-in scheduled basis. This would be a <br /> supplement to the 420 bus. Regarding the identification of other dentists, he said that those <br /> dentists are listed with the State as accepting Medicaid patients. It is probably on the basis of <br /> availability of services and a lot of them are not accepting new patients. <br /> Commissioner Jacobs said he thought the Carr Mill Clinic might have been open in the <br /> evening. He asked if it was conceivable for the clinic to be open on one evening a week or on <br /> a Saturday morning. Rosemary Summers said that this is possible, but they came to this final <br /> arrangement after several years of juggling schedules to find ones that actually seem to work <br /> for both staff and clients. She said that a student group did offer a free clinic in the evening, <br /> utilizing the Carr Mill location. <br /> Chair Foushee said that the County Commissioners did receive emails from Carrboro <br /> Alderman Dan Coleman and Chapel Hill Town Councilmember Lauren Easthom (expressing <br /> opposition to the closure of the dental clinic in Carr Mill Mall). <br /> PUBLIC COMMENT: <br /> Tinka Jordy asked the Board to allow some time for a financial proposal from the <br /> Hillsborough cultural community in regards to using the auditorium of the Whitted building for a <br /> cultural performance center. She said that this area of the County is in dire need of a cultural <br /> performance center. <br /> Mark Kleinschmidt said that he is here as a citizen and not the Mayor of Chapel Hill. <br /> He said that he is concerned about the plans to consolidate these dental services because it <br /> seems that there will be no service to residents in southern Orange County if this clinic is <br /> moved to Hillsborough. He said that taking advantage of community services is a burden for <br /> many of these residents. He said that the scatter maps and analysis done by staff is <br /> misleading. He said that his colleague, Laura Easthom, a dentist, sent an email to the County <br /> Commissioners. He said that it is her experience that the points that he is making hold true for <br /> the population that she serves. The alternatives to going to Hillsborough are inadequate to <br /> meet the needs of those who will not go to Hillsborough. He said that at the end of the day <br /> dental care is health care and failure to keep up with dental care can lead to more significant <br /> health problems. This leads to higher numbers of people going to the ER for dental related <br />