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MINUTES <br /> ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF SOCIAL SERVICES <br /> January 21,2025 <br /> THE ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF SOCIAL SERVICES MET ON MONDAY: January 21, at the Orange <br /> County Department of Social Services at 113 Mayo Street, Hillsborough, NC 27278. <br /> BOARD OF SOCIAL SERVICES MEMBERS PRESENT: Jane Garrett, Ann Wilkerson, Chris Barnes, and Oscar <br /> Fleming <br /> GUEST: None <br /> BOARD OF SOCIAL SERVICES MEMBERS ABSENT: Earl McKee <br /> STAFF PRESENT: Lindsey Shewmaker, Social Services Director; Sharron Hinton, Human Services Manager; <br /> Crystal Mitchell, Human Services Manager; and Rebekah Rapoza, Fiscal Operations Manager <br /> I. Call to Order and Introductions <br /> DSS Chair, Jane Garrett, called the meeting to order at 4:08 pm. <br /> II. Board Comments <br /> None. <br /> III. Public Comments <br /> Students from the UNC MSW program came to observe the meeting and introduced themselves. <br /> IV. Agenda Changes <br /> None. <br /> V. Action Items <br /> On a motion by Chris Barnes, the Board approved all previous minutes of December 16, 2024. Oscar <br /> Fleming seconded the motion. The motion was carried without dissent. <br /> VI. Items for Discussion and/or Decision <br /> 1. Medicaid Expansion Update <br /> Lindsey Shewmaker will be presenting this same information to the Board of County <br /> Commissioners (BOCC) at a meeting in February. DSS hired staff to manage the new program and <br /> began taking applications on December 1, 2023. By the end of December 2024, staff had taken <br /> applications on 86% of the estimated eligible residents within the first year. Director Shewmaker <br /> provided a brief overview of demographic information on new beneficiaries. Initially, there was a <br /> steep curve in enrollments and then leveled off. Staff attended numerous outreach events <br /> throughout the entire county and this work is still ongoing. Most of the earliest applications received <br /> were online through EPass and we are now focusing on outreach to reach those who may not have <br /> access to the internet or have technology skills. Even through expansion, staff passed timeliness <br /> and Recipient Eligibility Determination Audit (REDA) every month. <br /> 2. Budget Overview and Calendar <br /> Director Shewmaker provided copies of the budget calendar and information on the timeline was <br /> shared. The FY 26 budget cycle has kicked off and it is the responsibility of the County Manager to <br /> 1 <br />