The Moniteau County Senate Bill 40 Board met Monday, Aug. 23, at the Activity Center in California.
Present for the meeting were Board members James Canter, Don Vanderfeltz, Barb Denker, Ed Kerley, Gail Hughes, Cher Caudel, Ruby Gerber, Debbie Milligan, Executive Director Staci Harrison, Office Manager Tina Benton, QDDP Warren Kasper, Deerbrook Facility Supervisor Sherry Sanders, Activity Center Supervisor Andrea Parvin, CMRO Case Manager Supervisor Gina Hare and CMRO Case Manager Cindy Franks.
According to Harrison, all providers across the state received a two percent rate decrease starting July 1. Information received at Missouri Association of County Developmental Disabilities Services (MACDDS) meetings, a few larger tax levy counties have decided to cover the two percent decrease as a one-year commitment.
There has been a discussion of a possible decrease next year, with the amount unknown. The counties will decide covering the decrease this year will decide each year if they will continue to make up the difference.
Harrison recommended that the two percent reduction not be restored with local money, since this could be a larger problem in the future and there is a limited dollar amount the Board is able to commit to. She does not want the Board to find itself overcommitted or having made promises that can't be met fiscally.
After discussion, the Board voted to not cover or support the rate restoration.
As employees leave through attrition, a few full time positions will be converted to part time positions to decrease employee expenses to the organization.
At a MACDDS meeting, it was suggested a letter supporting ideas to generate funding that could prevent future rate cuts be sent to Dr. Keith Schafer, Missouri Department of Mental Health (DMH). President Canter referred this matter to the Kickstart Committee and recommended the letter be created with the Board's words.
Harrison also introduced the management staff to the Board of Directors. Andrea Parvin is the Facility Supervisor for the Activity Center. She is from Jamestown and has been supervising the Activity Center since December.
Warren Kasper is the new QDDP (Qualified Development Disabled Professional). He is originally from California.
Sherry Sanders is the new Facility Supervisor for Deerbrook II apartments. Although she is new to the area, she has been working in this field for more than 20 years.
Harrison plans to have each of the management staff report to the to the board each month during the directors report.
Harrison reported that interviews have been conducted to fill the staffing vacancies.
The agency is looking for quality applicants with a skill set that will benefit the individuals supported.
There are still two vacancies at Deerbrook II. One of the vacancies will soon be filled by a transitioning client. There are no prospects for the third vacancy at this time.
Harrison spoke to the Board regarding the issue of Targeted Case Management (TCM). The state will no longer be doing TCM and is outsourcing it, recommending the county SB40 boards take on the task.
After explanation by Harrison and lengthy discussion, the Board approved the SB40 Board begin the transition to provide TCM. The transition was referred to the Kickstart Committee.
The transition will not be easy and will not be fast. It will require looking over the layout of the building owned by the SB40 Board and making it more efficient for the total operation. Harrison commented it may take a minimum of six months to make the transition. Canter said that as the TCM grows, it could expand into the bay area with addition of offices or storage. There are currently 41 individuals identified as having case managers assigned to them. There may be some issues regarding families not wanting to lose their case managers and the relationship that has been built up over the years.
The regional office and the county will work together with the transition to get the new service going. The regional office will also provide as much training as necessary but expect the new case managers to take over in two or three months. Storage of the historical records is also an issue, but some of the counties have not taken the historical records.
During the interviews for the QDDP position, two individuals were identified which were more qualified for the TCM positions. Jane Blank has accepted the TCM Supervisor position and Amanda Carlyle will be the Case Manager. Harrison will be working with them as the transition progresses. It was originally proposed to have an administrative office for TCM. Other comparable SB40 Boards house administrative, day habilitation and TCM together and are making the setup work.
In other business, Benton presented the information on the time clocks to the Board. The Board reviewed the products of the three companies, and approved the one recommended by Benton -- Time Clock System Plus. The program is web based, allows employees to switch department codes and allows management personnel to log in at any time to see who is clocked in and find out how many hours the employees have in. It will therefore allow the management personnel to keep control of the amount of overtime. In her opinion, it is the most economical and has been presented as the one system which will meet all of the agency's needs.
In old business, the Board discussed the Memorandum of Understanding between the Board and the Food Bank. It has been started, but is not yet complete. The Board approved the estimate of $350 from Frerking Electric to locate the electrical problems in the bay area of the facility.
Debbie Milligan and Ruby Gerber are leaving the Board. Darrell Hendrickson will fill one position. The other position is yet to be determined.
The Board approved raising the tax levy to the maximum of 12 cents per $100 of assessed valuation from the current 11.82 cents.