Title
a. Approve and authorize the Director of the Department of Social Services, or his designee, to sign an agreement with the Santa Cruz County Human Services Department, to receive $34,182 for the period May 1, 2014 through December 31, 2014 for the provision of Covered California Outreach and Education activities to Monterey County individuals and families;
b. Accept the non-standard Agreement terms and conditions as recommended by the Director of the Department of Social Services; and
c. Approve and authorize the Director of the Department of Social Services, or his designee, to sign up to (3) amendments to this agreement where the total amendments do not exceed 10% and do not significantly change the scope of work.
Report
RECOMMENDATION:
It is recommended that the Board of Supervisors:
a. Approve and authorize the Director of the Department of Social Services, or his designee, to sign an agreement with the Santa Cruz County Human Services Department, to receive $34,182 for the period May 1, 2014 through December 31, 2014 for the provision of Covered California Outreach and Education activities to Monterey County individuals and families; and
b. Accept the non-standard Agreement terms and conditions as recommended by the Director of the Department of Social Services; and
c. Approve and authorize the Director of the Department of Social Services, or his designee, to sign up to (3) amendments to this agreement where the total amendments do not exceed 10% and do not significantly change the scope of work.
SUMMARY/DISCUSSION:
Monterey County Department of Social Services has been a partner of the regional collaborative formed in the summer of 2013 with the purpose of conducting outreach and education to the general public about how the Affordable Care Act benefits the residents of Monterey, Santa Cruz and San Benito counties and how medical care coverage is now available to almost everyone in this region. More specifically, the collaborative provides outreach and education on how individuals and families can purchase a Covered California insurance plan and /or apply for Medi-Cal depending on their financial situation and the number of people in the family.
Initially the Department joined this collaborative as an unfunded partner, using the ongoing work of the MC-CHOICE Outreach team and the Community Action Partnership to support the success of the collaborative. In May 2014, Santa Cruz County Human Services Department, the lead agency for the collaborative, identified $34,182 in savings that they want to allocate to Monterey County Department of Social Services to partially offset the cost of the Department's existing Covered California outreach and education activities. The Department's existing outreach program has been a key factor in the collaborative successfully meeting grant outcomes.
Currently, this outreach and education effort is funded by State allocations for public assistance eligibility. This one-time only funding opportunity from the regional collaborative led by Santa Cruz County will reduce pressure on the Department's allocations by partially offsetting existing outreach costs through December 31, 2014 when the grant ends. After, the grant ends the Department will continue with the outreach and educational activities to support individuals and families obtaining medical coverage using ongoing funding streams.
OTHER AGENCY INVOLVEMENT:
The Santa Cruz County Human Services Department submitted this agreement to the Santa Cruz County Counsel and the Board of Supervisors for approval. County Counsel is unable to approve the proposed agreement due to non-standard terms and conditions, including but not limited to: Monterey County as contractor is being required to provide protections of Santa Cruz County that we usually require to protect ourselves; documents and requirements incorporated into the agreement were not provided for review; Monterey County must absorb cost and perform even if State does not make grant or if there is an State Audit; geographical extent of performance obligation undefined; and confusing and potentially inconsistent reporting/performance obligations could result in unintentional breach by Monterey County.
FINANCING:
Funding for this agreement is provided by the California Health Benefit Exchange which administers Covered California under a grant held by Santa Cruz County as lead agency. Sufficient appropriations and estimated revenues in SOC005 are included in the FY 2014-15 Adopted Budget. Approval of this action has no impact on the County General Fund.
Prepared by: Margarita Zarraga, Program Manager x8492
Approved by: Elliott Robinson, Director of Social Services, x4434
Attachments:
Santa Cruz Agreement
Proposed contract is filed with Clerk of the Board as an attachment to this Board Report