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MINUTES ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF HEALTH February 22, 2001 Board of Health Minutes Transcription completed by V. Anne Miles 3 February 22, 2001 $7,500 in funding will be provided for testing, sterilization, and vaccination for approximately 150 cats in order to reduce the feral cat population. Title XIX, Medicaid, is increased from last year, primarily a result of adding two new medical office assistants to help with some of the Medicaid billing and reconciliation. If these positions are not approved, the Medicaid revenue may not be that high. The Health Department fee and tax income is projected to be quite a bit higher next year as a result of the increase in Environmental Health Services fees. It is important that we continue to recognize that the County funds the majority of our expenditures. On a per capita expenditure basis, we are in the lower 25% of all health departments. Revenue predictions for state funding is unstable right now. It will not be clear until May what funds will be available. The fee increases that are proposed in Environmental Health Services are for two purposes, 1) to have a greater cost recovery. Approximately 60% of our environmental health fees are now recovered. The proposed fee increase will cover 90% and pay for one position. Most of our revenue increases are tied to new position requests. Central Administrative Services: Some of the impacts that we have found in charging for services has been that it has really strained our billing staff. The increase of two positions should help with that and we are projecting that each of those new positions will bring in an additional $10,000 in revenue which will help subsidize both positions as well as make our revenue balance better. The medical interpreter position is also included in this division although that will function department wide. In the next two years, the department will need to be HIPHA compliant. (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Health Act) That Act has some stiff requirements that are going to require some additional resources. Dental Health: Revenue continues to increase in the fee for service as well as insurance reimbursement categories. The Medicaid revenue is not going to be at the same reimbursement level as when bundled charges were in effect. There has been a dramatic increase in the number of Latino/Hispanic patients that are being seen in Carrboro. Two days a month are devoted to services for Hispanic clients. Currently, the dental clinic has contracted with an interpreter to handle that load on those days only. With a medical interpreter on staff, there would be no need to have that contract. Orange County Health Department currently provides service to about 18% of the Medicaid-eligible children in the county. The clinics are at capacity. If there is an additional increase, we will have to look at additional clinic days and increasing staff. Environmental Health: Three new positions are requested, two for workload issues, one for the WTMP implementation. There are also fee