Approved Minutes of August 23 2023

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MINUTES-Draft ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF HEALTH August 23,2023 given in January and August and would be separate from the annual budget presentation occurring in February of each year. In response to Dr. Pickett's question of how much of a burden creating the financial reports presents to staff, Kimberlee Quatrone, Business Officer II, replied that there is little extra work, as the Finance Department already completes monthly profit/loss statements. Dr. Baldwin proposed that the Finance Department could draft and share out quarterly reports online, but only present to the board twice per year. However, in response several board members expressed that they would likely forget to review these updates. Dr. Stuebe suggested the provision that the financial review be semiannual unless there was variance in the budget beyond a certain threshold. There was then some conversation about how to set the margins for such variance, and it was agreed that the Finance Department should propose the benchmark for what constitutes a significant budget deviation. In response to Dr. Royce's question as to if remaining COVID funds could be used to make improvements to schools, such as upgrading the ventilation systems, Ms. Stewart replied that they could not, because schools had received their own funding separate from the health department. Additionally, Ms. Quatrone added that the COVID funds have a provision that they cannot be used to pay for any construction or structural work. Dr. Baldwin asked how long the accreditation cycle is and, as it is four years, why not enact the policy that the required trainings be completed every four years. Ms. Stewart replied that it presents more consistency for the policy to go by accreditation periods rather than years, as another pandemic or a revision to the accreditation period length would force the board to further revise the policy. VII. Reports and Discussion with Possible Action A. Media Items Ms. Stewart briefly summarized the articles, as Lena Wegner, Communications Manager, had recently left the department. Article topics included Medicaid expansion, an emerging COVID-19 variant (EG.5), and the approval of a new Respiratory Syncytia Virus (RSV) vaccine. The article about Medicaid expansion led to a robust discussion, in which Ms. Stewart explained that there is no definite date or plan for expansion, but the hope is that it will begin on October 1It (contingent upon legislation being passed by September 1 St). Ms. Stewart added that OCHD is prepared to educate the community about new eligibility requirements, but that due to a desire to avoid confusion, no actions will be taken until there is a definite date. In response to Dr. Baldwin's question about new eligibles, Ms. Stewart replied — and Commissioner Bedford echoed —that there would be approximately 6,000 new eligible beneficiaries in Orange County. There was an extended discussion about awareness of eligibility and ways to help newly eligible beneficiaries get enrolled, including the extent to which hospitals might assist individuals with Medicaid enrollment. While the board reached the conclusion that it seemed unlikely that hospitals will be heavily involved in the enrollment process, Ms. Stewart stated that the OCHD will coordinate with DSS, who will really push the news of the expansion to community members. Commissioner Bedford shared that four (of six) new temporary employees have been hired to assist with enrollment during the expansion. Dr. Stuebe, Commissioner Bedford, and Dr. Jonnal suggested sharing news of the expansion anywhere people may congregate, including PTA meetings, through school social workers, and at grocery stores. S:\Managers Working Files\BOH\Agenda&Abstracts\2023 Agenda&Abstracts/ August Page 8