Title
a. Ratify the execution by the Director of Health of the non-standard Agreement between the County of Monterey and Heluna Health to provide Public Health Microbiologist (PHM) training and to participate in the California Department of Public Health's (CDPH's) Continuity of Operations Plan (COOP) for statewide emergency/surge laboratory testing, with a retroactive start date of July 1, 2021 through December 15, 2022, for a total agreement amount of $160,000; and
b. Approve nonstandard risk provisions in Agreement as recommended by the Director of Health.
Report
RECOMMENDATION:
It is recommended that the Board of Supervisors:
a. Ratify the execution by the Director of Health of the non-standard Agreement between the County of Monterey and Heluna Health to provide Public Health Microbiologist (PHM) training and to participate in the California Department of Public Health's (CDPH's) Continuity of Operations Plan (COOP) for statewide emergency/surge laboratory testing, with a retroactive start date of July 1, 2021 through December 15, 2022, for a total agreement amount of $160,000; and
b. Approve nonstandard risk provisions in Agreement as recommended by the Director of Health.
SUMMARY/DISCUSSION:
The Health Department's Public Health Laboratory (PHL) is responsible for providing testing services to identify microorganisms that cause disease including bacteria, fungi, viruses, and parasites. The PHL is a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Laboratory Response Network (LRN) partner as well as a California SARS-CoV-2 Whole Genome Sequencing Initiative (COVIDNet) participant. The PHL provides polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing with associated whole genome sequencing for communicable disease surveillance purposes, surge events and other public health emergencies.
The Health Department's PHL received a grant from CDPH which is administered by Heluna Health to address the shortage of trained public health microbiologists and to support regional access t...
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