Minutes 02-15-2024 - Work Session

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6 working on a recruitment strategy to increase the number of licensed foster homes in Orange County. She said that in 2019 there were 83 licensed foster homes and in 2024 there are 53. She said that staff will continue to work on retention strategies to hire, train, and retain qualified staff. She said that Medicaid expansion has significantly impacted staff and they are making sure that everyone has the opportunity to apply for coverage. Commissioner Portie-Ascott asked what she thinks is contributing to the drop in foster families. Lindsey Shewmaker, Human Services Manager for DSS, said that the numbers dropped during COVID and did not come back when restrictions eased up. She said that many foster families "foster to adopt" and do not come back in the program. Commissioner Portie-Ascott asked how Orange County compares to other counties. Lindsey Shewmaker said she does not know exactly but she knows that there are difficulties in every county. Commissioner Portie-Ascott asked what underserved community is lacking in getting signed up for Medicaid. Lindsey Shewmaker said that the state has a dashboard that shows the demographics of who is signing up for Medicaid. She said there are age and racial demographics that they are tracking and would like to see those numbers after another month and then start target outreach where gaps are showing. Commissioner Hamilton asked what kinds of targeted outreach they plan to do. Lindsey Shewmaker said they are working with their community partners, and they can also map who is in the system and that allows them to see who they are serving and where. She said there are now 400 pending applications, and they can start to refocus on targeting gaps. Commissioner Hamilton asked what kinds of tools they might use to reach those populations. Lindsey Shewmaker said it depends on the community. She said they would explore ways to reach various communities as numbers show more. Commissioner Hamilton said that Carrboro is having an event on February 24t" Commissioner Richards gave Lindsey Shewmaker handouts from the recent NACo conference she attended. Lee Pickett of the Animal Services Advisory Board noted an item from their report in the agenda packet about the Pat Sanford Grant. She said that the grant went to the Partnership to End Homelessness and to the street outreach harm reduction and deflection team. She said the funds went to pay for food and other needs for pets of homeless neighbors. She said that in the United States, 10-15% of the people who are homeless have a pet. She said that people who are homeless and have pets do better than people who do not. She said people who have pets are less likely to use alcohol or illegal drugs or engage in risky behaviors that might result in them being separated from their pet. She said that homeless youth with pets are three times less likely to be depressed. She said people who are homeless and have dogs are less likely to be assaulted. She said that the grant supports the needs of homeless people and their pets in a creative way. She thanked all of the Orange County volunteers who do so much for the community. She said that members of the Animal Services Advisory Board volunteer for the Animal Services Hearing Panel, do pro bono veterinary work, teach dog training techniques to shelter volunteers, assist in advertising animals who are available for adoption, and serve on the affordable housing task force. Chair Bedford asked if Orange County experienced any dog flu issues the way Wake County recently did. Lee Pickett said that the practices at the Orange County shelter likely contributed to avoiding the illness. Sandra Strong, the Animal Services Director, echoed those comments and said that the newer age of the facility may have also contributed to avoiding a dog flu outbreak.