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Home My WebLink AboutBOH minutes 092414MINUTES ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF HEALTH September 24, 2014 S:\Managers Working Files\BOH\Agenda & Abstracts\2014 Agenda & Abstracts/ September Page 1 ORANGE COUNTY HEALTH DEPARTMENT MISSION STATEMENT: To enhance the quality of life, promote the health, and preserve the environment for all people in the Orange County community. THE ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF HEALTH MET ON September 24, 2014, at the Orange County Health Department, 300 West Tryon Street, Hillsborough, NC. BOARD OF HEALTH MEMBERS PRESENT: Corey Davis, Chair; Tony Whitaker, Liska Lackey, Nick Galvez, Sam Lasris, Matthew Kelm, Esther Earbin and Commissioner Bernadette Pelissier BOARD OF HEALTH MEMBERS ABSENT: STAFF PRESENT: Dr. Colleen Bridger, Health Director; Tersee Flores, Administrative Assistant II; Donna King, Public Health Education Director; Pam McCall, Public Health Nursing Director; Coby Austin, Financial and Administrative Services Division Director; Alan Clapp, Environmental Health Director; Stacy Shelp, Communications Manager; Meredith Stewart, Public Health Program Manager; Connie Pixley, Environmental Health Supervisor; Judy Butler, Public Health Nurse Supervisor; Meredith McMonigle, Senior Public Health Educator and Barbara Hawksworth, Environmental Health Technician GUESTS PRESENT: None I. Welcome Dr. Bridger introduced new staff member: Meredith McMonigle, Senior Public Health Education/Child Poverty Coordinator Chairperson Corey introduced the new Board of Health member Esther Earbin, At Large position. II. Public Comment for Items NOT on Printed Agenda: None III. Approval of September 24, 2014 Agenda Motion was made by Bernadette Pelissier to approve the agenda, seconded by Nick Galvez and carried without dissent. MINUTES ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF HEALTH September 24, 2014 S:\Managers Working Files\BOH\Agenda & Abstracts\2014 Agenda & Abstracts/ September Page 2 IV. Action Items (Consent) A. Minutes Approval of August 27, 2014 Meeting Motion was made by Liska Lackey to approve the August 27, 2014 meeting minutes, seconded by Tony Whitaker and carried without dissent. V. Educational Session A. Riverwalk Exploration Due to the weather, the walk was postponed. Meredith Stewart, Public Health Program Manager, gave a brief history of the award-winning Riverwalk which features the Eno River, a river known for its beauty and excellent water quality, which has been preserved through aggressive citizen efforts. Many grants from such organizations like the Parks and Recreation Trust Fund were needed for land acquisitions and construction. Meredith called attention to the care and forethought in planning that has resulted in minimal disturbance to the flora and fauna as well as the bordering residential areas. Riverwalk is a part of the Mountain-to-Sea Trail and will eventually connect Occoneechee Mountain to Occoneechee speedway. Riverwalk provides an accessible pedestrian corridor through Hillsborough for residents and visitors. The Riverwalk opening celebration will be held on Saturday, October 11th from 1-5 PM. Complete information can be found here VI. Action Items (Non Consent) A. Bad Debt Write-Off Coby Austin reported per the department’s Delinquent and Uncollectable Accounts policy (15.0), uncollectible accounts are to be administratively written off the books. The purpose of this accounting function is to precisely account for and pursue funds which are truly recoverable. The write-off done in 2013 for Personal Health and Dental included Medicaid and Insurance claims that had not been filed due to lack of adequate staff training and system challenges during the initial roll out of HIS. At the time of the last write-off, Personal Health and Dental were not participating in the NC Debt Set-Off Program, which allows the county to collect debts on delinquent accounts through the customer’s tax refund. Therefore, all unpaid self-pay balances were submitted for write-off in 2013. MINUTES ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF HEALTH September 24, 2014 S:\Managers Working Files\BOH\Agenda & Abstracts\2014 Agenda & Abstracts/ September Page 3 The health department still anticipates collecting payments on delinquent accounts being pursued through the NC Debt Set-off program. Coby requested to administratively move a total of $9,073.75 in uncollectible debt from ‘active’ to ‘inactive’ status. If a customer whose account has been determined uncollectible returns to the clinic within three years, the delinquent write-off amount will be reactivated and the billing process resumed. The BOH members had several questions that were addressed by Coby Austin. Motion was made by Sam Lasris to administratively move a total of $9,073.75 in uncollectible debt from ‘active’ to ‘inactive’ status for Environmental, Dental and Personal Health for fiscal year 2012-2013, second by Matthew Kelm and carried without dissent. B. Flu Vaccine Mandate Pam McCall reported on the flu vaccine mandate. The board reviewed the staff survey results as well as the vaccination proposal. Prior to a vote, the Board heard from two staff who presented both sides of the issue of the vaccination mandate. Meredith Stewart presented an argument against requiring the vaccine. Judy Butler, Community Services Section Supervisor, presented the argument for the requirement. Pam mentioned there will be religious and medical exemptions granted under this proposal; however unvaccinated individuals will need to wear a mask when interacting with patients or high risk individuals. The mandatory flu vaccination policy will require all Health Department employees to show documentation of current influenza vaccination by October 17, 2014. Employees with medical or religious exemptions will have the same deadline to show proper documentation. A note stating that the employee should not receive the vaccine signed by the employee’s healthcare provider is sufficient for the medical exemption. A signed statement saying that receiving the influenza vaccine is contrary to the employee’s religion will be accepted as appropriate documentation for the religious exemption. All employees who do not comply and have not received a medical or religious exemption will be placed on unpaid administrative leave for one week. If at the end of the week the employee has not met the vaccination requirement, the employee will be considered to have voluntarily resigned. The flu vaccine will be provided at no charge to the employee. The employee’s insurance will be charged for the vaccination. MINUTES ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF HEALTH September 24, 2014 S:\Managers Working Files\BOH\Agenda & Abstracts\2014 Agenda & Abstracts/ September Page 4 The BOH members had several questions that were addressed by Pam McCall and Dr. Bridger. Motion was made by Liska Lackey to recommend making annual influenza vaccination a condition of employment for staff, seconded by Bernadette Pelissier. The motion passed 7 to 1 in favor with Sam Lasris voting against. C. Fee Increase for Well Water Testing Alan Clapp, Environmental Health Division Director, reported on the recent legislative session and approved state budget which caused the NC State Laboratory of Public Health (NCSLPH) to raise fees for testing water from existing wells. This legislation has resulted in a 2000% increase in certain testing kits. The new lab fees are effective September 1, 2014. Alan requested the Board raise the current fees for water sampling to be commensurate with the new costs of these services. The Board reviewed the following documents: • State Lab Environmental Sciences well-water testing FY15 fee schedule. • Well-water testing profiles. • 2015 Water Sample Cost Analysis. • Late fee increases for private drinking water well sampling. • Proposed Water Sample Fees September 2014. For background, G.S. 87-97 Permitting, Inspecting and testing of private drinking water wells mandates the local county well program. Chapter 130A-39 empowers the local board of health to impose fees for services. The BOH members had several questions that were addressed by Alan Clapp Motion was made by Sam Lasris to raise the current fees for water sampling to be commensurate with the new costs of services effective January 1, 2015, seconded by Matthew Kelm and carried without dissent. VII. Reports and Discussion with Possible Action A. Health Director Annual Evaluation Chairperson Corey Davis provided an overview and reminded the Board it is time for the Health Director’s annual evaluation. A review of possible processes and evaluation sources was discussed with a general plan to review Dr. Bridger’s work plan, reach out to the County Manager and provide a general email for feedback to staff with results to be presented in October. MINUTES ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF HEALTH September 24, 2014 S:\Managers Working Files\BOH\Agenda & Abstracts\2014 Agenda & Abstracts/ September Page 5 The BOH members had several questions that were addressed by Chairperson Corey and Dr. Bridger. B. Health Director’s Report There were no questions from the board regarding the Health Director’s Report included in the packet. Dr. Bridger gave a brief update on the pet owner who failed to surrender her dog after her dog bit a woman. After she failed to respond to the Order for Surrender, the Judge agreed to issue a warrant for her arrest. Dr. Bridger reported the women was arrested and ordered to bring the dog back to Animal Control. The dog was surrendered to Animal Control. C. Media Items Media Items were in the packet which focused on Orange County’s events and our involvement in various efforts. VIII. Board Comments No additional comments given. X. Adjournment A motion was made by Matthew Kelm to adjourn the meeting at 9:00 p.m., was seconded by Nick Galvez and carried without dissent. The next Board of Health Meeting will be held October 22, 2014 at the Orange County Health Department, 300 West Tryon Street, Hillsborough, NC at 7:00 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Colleen Bridger, MPH, PHD. Health Director Secretary to the Board