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HomeMy WebLinkAboutHuman Services Board - Minutes - 12/2/2014BAYFIELD COUNTY HUMAN SERVICES BOARD MEETING Bayfield County EOC December 2, 2014 Board Members Present: Rusty Williams, Pat Carver, Bill Bussey , Fred Strand, Jim Crandall, John Bennett (arrived at 4:37), Deb Pyne (remote by phone), Kent Seldal Board Members Excused: Lona Schmidt Others Present: Elizabeth Skulan, Nikki Revak, Carrie Linder, Jeanine Spuhler, Rebecca Kruit Call to Order and Introductions Williams called the meeting to order at 4:03 p.m. Introductions were made. Review of the October 23, 2014 Meeting Minutes Motion by Carver, seconded by Crandall, to approve the minutes as presented. Motioned passed unanimously. Public Comment – Limited to 3 minutes per person None Program Presentation – Subsidized Guardianships – Social Worker Rebecca Kruit, Family Services Section The state implemented this program in August of 2011. Subsidized Guardianship (SG) is a permanent placement option for children in out-of-home care that transfers legal authority to a relative or like-kin guardian without terminating parental rights. It allows children to reach permanency when adoption and reunification with their parents are not the best options. Guardians assume legal authority to consent to the child’s school activities, health care, and everyday events, while allowing for family dynamics and relationships to remain intact. The prospective guardian must be: licensed as a foster parent, approved for guardianship; have a strong commitment to permanently care for the child, a caregiver for the child for six consecutive months prior to guardianship and enter into the SG agreement. All steps in the process must be met or the State will deny SG. The State determines the SG payments that will be made monthly to the guardian, depending on certain criteria. Though Federal Funds do not pay for the entire placement, counties cannot deny SG due to financial restraints or for budget reasons. The majority of families do not qualify for the program. For families that do qualify, it creates permanency for children. SG payments continue until the child is 19 if enrolled full-time in high school or an equivalent education or up to age 21 if enrolled full-time in high school or an equivalent and other criteria apply. BAYFIELD COUNTY HUMAN SERVICES BOARD MEETING Bayfield County EOC December 2, 2014 2 DHS has had one SG case since implementation of the program in 2011. Monthly Section Reports Support Services – Nikki Revak Staff is currently working on 2014 year-end procedures and is also preparing documents for 2015. With the zero percent increase in health insurance, the 2015 Budget was revised to incorporate those changes. This will be presented later in the meeting. Support staff assisted with the revisions for the Comprehensive Community Service (CCS) Program Plan. Information regarding the status of the program will be presented later in the meeting. Economic Support Services – Jeanine Spuhler Lisa Fox-Wold began employment in Bayfield County as a Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) worker for the Northern Income Maintenance Consortium (NIMC). Lisa started November 18 and is currently involved in extensive new worker training. She is very excited to be here! With open enrollment for PPACA beginning again, the Federal Marketplace has sent approximately 200 applications to NIMC that contain unique elements for further review to process. Though there are still glitches in the system, the good news is that workers know what to look for compared to last year. Some NIMC staff has volunteered to work more hours to assist with the increase in workload. Affordable Care Act recipients are required to reapply for the program and to verify their income or report any changes since their first applications. Wisconsin Home Energy Assistant Program (WHEAP) applications are on the decline. No figures have been released on how many applications have been received statewide or what the average allocation will be. Most of the calls we are currently receiving are related to furnace repair or replacement. The FoodShare application timelines have increased from 30 days to 90 days without having to go through the entire process of filling out another application. The Child Care Program will be incorporated in the Northern Income Maintenance starting on January 5, 2015. Testing on the Call Center for the new menu, which will include Child Care, will occur on Wednesday, December 3. Aging & Disability Services – Carrie Linder Jack Holevatz, Information and Assistance Specialist, tracked assistance calls and averaged just over 100 calls per month. Jack is currently .5 FTE for Bayfield and .5 FTE for the Region. Ashland County also has a .5 FTE regional position. Linder meets monthly with the Ashland County Supervisor and the Aging and Disability Resource Center of the North (ADRC – N) Coordinator to BAYFIELD COUNTY HUMAN SERVICES BOARD MEETING Bayfield County EOC December 2, 2014 3 ensure consistent training and direction. Sawyer County will be hiring another regional full-- time Information and Assistance Specialist before year end. This will assist with backup coverage and leave county Information and Assistance Specialists more time to perform home visits, screening and such. Memory Screenings were held on November 18, 2014 at various sites in the five county ADRC – N region. Participant numbers varied at each venue but the event was a well-received by the public. Ann Marie Mackin, the new Bayfield County ADRC Information and Assistance Specialist is doing well in her position. She is willing and able to roll up her sleeves and take the initiative to complete tasks at hand. With the Adult Protective vacancy, Patti Carlson and Karen Guski have been hired on a limited- term part-time basis to help with the caseload. There are thirty consumers that will need year end reports and start up reports for 2015. The Senior Nutrition program in Barnes has been improved with access to technology. The new meal site manager is familiar with computers and requested a computer and printer for that site that can be used to assist seniors locate additional resources. This addition has not been without controversy, but a balance has been struck and plans are moving along smoothly. A general policy for appropriate computer use is being developed. The Barnes Town Board is partnering with Bayfield County, allowing senoirs access to the Internet using their WIFI at no cost. Family Services – Anita Haukaas Placements are difficult to locate for consumers dually diagnosed with substance abuse and mental health issues. Other counties are experiencing similar issues – an increase in the need for these valuable, but limited resources. One such individual was placed in custody today and staff is searching for the appropriate group home for placement. Staff is getting familiar with the new electronic version of the Random Moment Time Studies (RMTS). Contacts were previously performed via phone calls from the State directly to the social worker to determine what work the social worker was performing at the time of the call. The RMTS has been automated and workers receive an e-mail that must be responded to. With this new method, more questions are being asked of workers. All Wisconsin counties are using this new electronic method. Staffing cases with Red Cliff is going working very well. Chally Topping-Thompson has returned as the Indian Child Welfare (ICW) Director for the Red Cliff Band of Superior Chippewa. Loretta Livingston was hired as a parent aide through a Gemini contracted worker position. Loretta works with the Family Treatment Court program. She is working with parents in their BAYFIELD COUNTY HUMAN SERVICES BOARD MEETING Bayfield County EOC December 2, 2014 4 homes providing direction, supervision and assisting families who struggle while parenting their children. Haukaas has been reviewing the 2014 budget and working on Safe and Stable Families program and AODA Block grant program expenses. One employee, who was working part-time, is back to full-time status. Family Treatment Court Intern Courtney Rauschenbach, is developing policies that will be use to determining eligibility for the program. The next Family Treatment Court meeting is scheduled for Thursday. Monthly Reports The monthly reports were reviewed and placed on file. Given the current spending patterns, it is projected that DHS will end 2014 with a balanced budget. Skulan will attend the December County Board meeting to request an increase in spending authority, but the resolution does not request any additional county levy or access to the Risk Reserve. Staffing Update Since the last board meeting Lisa Fox Wold began working as a PPACA worker in the Economic Support Unit. DHS has received two notices of retirement. Home Delivered Meal Van Driver Gary Sarver tendered his resignation as of January 1, 2015. Child Protective Services (CPS) Social Worker Tom Moran also tendered his resignation as of January 2, 2015. DHS is recruiting for two CPS positions, one Adult Protective Services (APS) position and a Home Delivered Meal driver position. Three interviews for CPS positions are scheduled for Friday During the first round of CPS interviews, six candidates were invited to interview. Three individuals declined the interview. The balance of the candidates were minimally qualified and not a good match for the position. Individuals in these positions must be certified or qualify for a social work training certificate and then be able to secure their certification within two years of hire. As Linder mentioned earlier, DHS has contracted former employees Patti Carlson and Karen Guski on a limited-term, part-time basis to assist Aging and Disability staff until an APS social worker is hired. One person returned from Family Medical Leave and one person just began a Family Medical Leave in the Family Services Section. Letters of Recognition Skulan routed letters of recognition for the DHS Board members’ signature for retiring staff. BAYFIELD COUNTY HUMAN SERVICES BOARD MEETING Bayfield County EOC December 2, 2014 5 Consumer Appointment to the ADRC-N Advisory Committee – Deanna Yost Skulan reported that Clarence Henkel’s relocation and subsequent resignation left a vacancy for a Bayfield County Consumer Representative on the Aging and Disability Resource Center Advisory Committee. Deanna Yost, the parent of an adult with a disability, is qualified and interested in filling the position. Yost attended the September Advisory meeting in Cable. Skulan asked for approval of the appointment. Motion by Bussey, second by Crandall, to approve the appointment of Deanna Yost to the ADRC-N Advisory Committee retroactive to the September 22, 2014 meeting. Motion passed unanimously. 2014 Budget Resolution Skulan reported that primarily due to Carryover Funds, DHS will exceed its original 2014 budget authority. DHS is seeking to increase the 2014 budget authority by $403,110. This increase is not expected to require any additional county levy. Motion by Carver, second by Bussey, to approve the 2014 Budget Resolution to increase the 2014 spending level by $403,110 and send to the county board for their approval. Motion passed unanimously. Comprehensive Community Service Program – Status Report Skulan reported that the Bayfield and Ashland County region is not yet certified. Ashland and Bayfield Counties received technical assistance from the State in November. The technical assistance provided a review of the administrative code, but did not provide information regarding where the plan was deficient. Another technical assistance meeting has been scheduled for December 8, 9, and 10. Two new items of information were introduced at the November meeting. We were informed that the CCS program is an entitlement program, which is not what we were led to believe when the application process started. We were also led to believe that start-up costs would be reimbursed during the first annual reconciliation once we were certified. Our contract provider, New Horizon’s North, hired and trained staff so once the certified the program could be implemented. We originally had planned on an implementation date of October 1, 2014. The provider has substantial investment. Now we are unsure if CMS will reimburse those costs. We are currently checking with the State and other resources on both of issues. Our main goal is to keep moving forward, get certified and provide services to participants. Other (Informational Items) A. Note – Thank you for heating assistance Future Meetings A. January 22, 2015 B. February 26, 2015 BAYFIELD COUNTY HUMAN SERVICES BOARD MEETING Bayfield County EOC December 2, 2014 6 C. March 26, 2015 Adjournment The meeting adjourned at 5:07 p.m. Submitted by Nikki Revak, Financial Manager