DD Board discusses financial information

VW independent/submitted information

The Van Wert County Board of Developmental Disabilities reviewed financial information and also talked about Medicaid case management during its July meeting Monday evening.

Included in a report given by the Business Manager Dr. Stephen Mercer were updates on the financial impact created by the phase-out of the state tangible personal property tax reimbursements, as well as the loss of tax equity payments from the state due to the current distribution formula.

Mercer also reported on the completion of the board’s Medicaid audit for Fiscal Years 2011 and 2012 and also reviewed contractual components related to the agreement between the board and Thomas Edison Center.

The board also approved expenditures of $544,769.03.

Superintendent Jim Stripe reported on a recent announcement by the Ohio Department of Developmental Disabilities related to Medicaid services provided by Ohio’s County Boards of DD, noting that the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services issued a rule that became effective in March 2014 that those providing certain Medicaid services cannot also be responsible for case management for those services, also known as “conflict-free case management.”

“Historically, Ohio’s system for delivering services to the DD population has been heavily reliant on the local county boards providing both direct service and case management,” Stripe told the board. “Ohio submitted a corrective action plan to the federal government outlining steps to address this conflict.”

In part, Stripe noted that DD boards must recruit providers outside of the boards and establish annual benchmarks for reducing the number of people served by the county boards.

Van Wert County Board of DD has been working on the issue for several years, Stripe noted. In 1978, the board established Thomas Edison Center, a private, not-for-profit corporation, to provide services and support to individuals with developmental disabilities. Those services and support have been provided by a combination of county board and Thomas Edison Center board employees, Stripe explained, noting that the County DD Board has opted to comply with the federal government’s conflict-free requiring by transitioning the county board employees to the not-for-profit board.

“This move enables individuals to continue receiving services and supports from the same direct service employees in the same settings,” Stripe said, adding that the county DD board would continue to provide the necessary funding for the services, as well as case management oversight and monitoring.

Also Monday, the DD Board approved a lease with Thomas Edison Center related to building and equipment use and also approved a contract with the Van Wert City Schools, administrative agent for the Family and Children First program, to provide Help Me Grow services in the county.