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a. Public Hearing on Establishing the Orange-Person-Chatham Local <br />Management Entity fLME) <br />The Board received public comment on entering into an Interlocal Cooperation <br />Agreement {ICA) to form athree-county public entity to serve as the Local Management Entity <br />(LME) far ensuring mental health, developmental disability, and substance abuse services <br />{MH/DD/SA} in the Orange, Person, and Chatham counties catchment area. <br />Assistant County Manager Gwen Harvey introduced this item. <br />OPC Director Tom Maynard said that the Board is aware of the background for this <br />agreement. The State has required that they go through mental health reform and each county <br />was required to submit a business plan. The State plan has been revised four times, but what <br />has not changed are the requirements for how to conduct business. The steering committee <br />has recommended that their governance structure change. The statutory authority for the new <br />organization will now flow from the Boards of County Commissioners and not the State. The <br />chief difference is that the County Commissioners will directly administer the program. The area <br />board will become an advisory board. They are the only one in the State to choose this <br />particular method. The plan is that the new structure will come into being on or about July 1, <br />2004. Person County has already approved the agreement and Chatham County is taking it up <br />shortly. The OPC Area Authority will be dissolved over time. <br />Commissioner Brown commended Tom Maynard for an excellent job. She supports the <br />establishment of this new management. <br />Commissioner Halkiotis verified that full implementation of privatizing will happen by <br />June 30, 2000 and there is still no financing plan from the State. Tom Maynard said that there <br />is clarification on haw the LME will be funded -directly by State and Federal monies. They da <br />not yet have rates and service definitions. <br />John Link said that as they face each of these issues in the next two years about how to <br />divest functions and how they fund a particular service, what will be totally different is that both <br />the County Commissioners and County Manager will for the first time have direct dialogue and <br />impact to the State bureaucracy for mental health. This has never occurred before. <br />Commissioner Halkiotis said that keeping clinics open means paying staff and keeping a <br />level of service that they have been proud of in the past. He does not have much faith in the <br />State bureaucracy. He asked if there should be a safety net in case something happens. He <br />supports the plan. <br />Chair Jacobs said that there was discussion earlier about the State trying to requisition <br />$1.2 million from OPC and he asked what happened to this. Tom Maynard said that their <br />attorneys have prepared a response on this. They believe that the State has double subtracted <br />the Medicaid income. The biggest problem is that their funding levels have been increased but <br />the State has made it harder for OPC to capture the money. This has had a severe impact on <br />the cash flow. <br />Chair Jacobs asked for Tom Maynard to share a copy of this letter from the attorneys <br />with the Board. <br />PUBLIC COMMENT: NONE <br />Commissioner Brawn agreed with Commissioner Halkiotis an having some type of <br />safety net. <br />A motion was made by Commissioner Brown, seconded by Commissioner Halkiotis to <br />close the public hearing, schedule the Interlocal Cooperation Agreement for decision at the <br />meeting an June 23rd, and include a safety net to be available for mental health. <br />VOTE: UNANIMOUS <br />9. Items for Decision--Regular Agenda <br />