COPPER COUNTRY MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 26, 2014 6:00 PM
MINUTES
Rice Memorial Center
901 W. Memorial Dr.
Houghton, MI 49931
CALL TO ORDER: The meeting was called to order at 6:00 PM.
ROLL CALL: Board Members Present – Jim Altenburg, Randy Eckloff, Carol Evers, Richard Herrala, Mike Koskinen, Nancy Middleton, Patrick Rozich and James Tervo.
New Board Member Introductions: Mr. Tervo welcomed Richard Herrala to the Board. Richard Herrala stated he worked at Copper Country Mental Health for several years and retired in 2011. He stated that he remains interested in working with children, and being a member of the Board will be good challenge for him. He feels he has the knowledge and expertise to be valuable asset to the Board. The Board welcomed Richard Herrala.
ABSENT: Dyann Edgerton, Barry Fink, Albert Koskela and James Fyfe.
OTHERS: Vicki Mikkola, Cari Raboin, Alice Reynolds, Susan Serafini and Sue Nutini.
APPROVAL OF AGENDA
MOTION by Mr. Koskinen, seconded by Mr. Rozich, that the Agenda be approved as presented with no additions or deletions. Motion carried unanimously.
APPROVAL OF MINUTES
MOTION by Mr. Rozich, seconded by Ms. Evers, that the Minutes of the January 29, 2014 Board meeting be approved as presented. Motion carried unanimously.
TREASURER’S REPORTS FOR JANUARY & FEBRUARY 2014
MOTION by Ms. Middleton, supported by Mr. Altenburg, that checks numbered 37973 to 38323 for a total of $3,813,632.27, and the Combined Cash Investments Report dated January, 2014 totaling $8,104,543.36 is accepted, and that checks numbered 38324 to 38608 for a total of $1,265,932.89, and the Combined Cash Investments Report dated February, 2014 totaling $8,303,532.57 is accepted and placed on file. YES: Middleton, Altenburg, Eckloff, Evers, Herrala, Koskinen, Rozich, and Tervo. Motion carried unanimously.
COMMENTS FROM THE PUBLIC – There were no comments from the public.
CHAIRPERSON’S REPORT – Mr. Tervo, Board Chairperson, presented the Chairperson’s Report.
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Nominating Committee – Mr. Tervo stated he asked Ms. Evers and Ms. Middleton if they would serve on the Nominating Committee to fill the vacancies, and they agreed to serve. Ms. Edgerton is a member of the Nominating Committee as well. The Nominating Committee will need to meet prior to the April Board meeting, which will be held in Ontonagon.
NorthCare Governing Board Meeting – 3/12/14 – Mr. Tervo, Mr. Koskinen and Mr. Rozich attended this meeting. Mr. Rozich attended in person and stated it was an interesting meeting and was nice to meet the staff from Marquette. The NorthCare group is still trying to establish things. The Finance Officer continues to try to separate NorthCare and Pathways finances, and the Director’s Report is quite lengthy. Mr. Slavin is doing a good job and things will change eventually as Board Members realize their role in the organization. Mr. Rozich stated it would be nice if Copper Country could have at least one Board Member present in Marquette at each of the meetings. Mr. Tervo explained to the new Board Members how the NorthCare Governing Board works. Vicki Mikkola asked if the Board would like to get any of the documents that NorthCare sends out for the meetings. Mr. Rozich suggested the full Board receive
the Director’s Report to review and Vicki Mikkola stated she would send this to the Board.
Executive Director Performance Evaluation – The Executive Director Performance Evaluation forms were distributed this evening to the Board Members along with a self-addressed, stamped envelope to mail back to the Chairperson of the Board. Mr. Tervo asked the Board Members to complete the evaluation and return to him as soon as possible.
GLRMHA Meeting – 2/26/14 – Mr. Tervo stated the Great Lakes Rural Mental Health Association Executive Committee met on February 26, 2014 via telephone conference call. They discussed the 2014 Fall Conference which will be held at the Magnuson Hotel in Houghton on September 7-9, 2014. After several contacts with DCH, Missy Lane received a notice that Liz Knisely, the Director of the Bureau of Community-Based Services, will attend the conference to provide a DCH Update. Mr. Tervo stated Mike Vizena from MACMHB will be attending along with Bill Slavin from NorthCare and Judy Brugman for Substance Abuse. Other presentations on the Agenda will include a Veterans presentation, Open Meetings Act discussion, and a consumer presentation, possibly Drs. Joe and Jan Cools, anti-stigma presentation, Mental Health First Aid presentation and a CMH CEO Round Table discussion. Mr. Tervo stated it will be a full two-day Agenda of conference presentations. Mr. Koskinen asked if any of our representatives or senators were invited to participate, and Mr. Tervo stated they were not but he would bring this up.
Board Member Per Diem – Mr. Tervo stated the Board has a new way of being compensated, and they are now considered to be employees of Copper Country Mental Health and paid through the payroll department. Mr. Tervo asked if there is a desire by the Board to change the per diem rate. Discussion followed.
MOTION by Mr. Koskinen, seconded by Mr. Altenburg that the Board raises the meeting per diem rate to $50. YES: Koskinen, Altenburg, Eckloff, Evers, Herrala, Middleton,
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Rozich and Tervo. Motion carried unanimously.
Ms. Vicki Mikkola stated she will check the By-Laws to be sure this change in per diem rate can occur.
Healthy Michigan – Mr. Tervo discussed the Healthy Michigan Plan. This plan will extend health care benefits to low-income Michigan residents. Mr. Tervo stated people can begin to apply on April 1, 2014. There are 64,000 applications already filled out sitting in “the cloud” in the federally facilitated market place waiting to get into the system. Mr. Tervo is recommending that people from CCMH who already applied should reapply for this benefit at the start-up date. This will ensure that their application is not disregarded or misplaced. There are many things that still need to be resolved, and Mr. Tervo stated the DHS employees are unsure how this will go. He will continue to be in contact with Vicki Mikkola regarding this matter. There could be between 320,000 and 470,000 individuals that could be eligible in Michigan.
DIRECTOR’S REPORT: Vicki Mikkola, Executive Director, presented the Director’s Report.
CCMHS Annual Report FY 2013 – Vicki Mikkola stated the Copper Country Mental Health Annual Report for FY 2013 was distributed to the Board this evening. The report is created by Tami Anderson and was dedicated to the memory of Mr. Hubert Lukkari of Ontonagon County who served on the Board for the past 15 years. We followed the same format as previous years and the report includes a letter from the Board Chairperson, Fiscal Profile, Information on the consumers we serve, Consumer Satisfaction Survey Data, Agency highlights, the Recovery Exhibit, an article on Arnie Bolo- a member of the Ontonagon RICC, an article on Eric Hipple’s Recovery Lecture Series, and CCMH Program information. Vicki Mikkola stated if anyone has questions regarding the Annual Report content or if you would like additional copies, please let us know.
QI Program Report for 1st Quarter of FY 2014 – Ms. Evers presented the Quality Improvement 1st Quarter Report for FY 2014. Ms. Evers stated the recording and reporting of Incident Reports has changed, and they are entered in the Electronic Medical Records (EMR) system now. The new reports will be coming out of the EMR system and the regional group is in charge of pulling the report together. Ms. Evers stated there were 4 Risk Events and 6 Sentinel Events reported in the 1st Quarter. The Board asked what the difference is with Critical and Sentinel Events and Ms. Evers stated she will bring in that information to the next meeting. Vicki Mikkola added that Incident Reports are reviewed by the Rights Officer and Corporate Compliance Officer and then assigned to other reviewers that need to see the report.
Annual Review of Mission Statement – Vicki Mikkola stated the Mission Statement is reviewed each year by the Board and she requested formal approval.
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MOTION by Mr. Koskinen, supported by Mr. Eckloff, that the Board approves the Copper Country Mental Health Services Board Mission Statement as presented. Motion carried unanimously.
Contract FY 14 – Vicki Mikkola presented a new agreement to provide services to consumers who are the responsibility of the Board. The agreement is with Stuart Wilson, CPA, PC, for Fiscal Intermediary Services for consumers on self-determination arrangements for respite. The cost is $7 per month per consumer for disbursement of funds to respite providers and other financial management services as authorized. Vicki Mikkola stated we will be responsible for the training needed, and we will send the Fiscal Intermediary the timesheets and he will cut the checks.
MOTION by Mr. Rozich, seconded by Ms. Evers, that the Board approves the new contract with Stuart Wilson for Fiscal Intermediary Services for consumers on self-determination arrangements for respite at the rate specified as presented. Motion carried unanimously.
Updates – Vicki Mikkola stated the Michigan Association of Community Mental Health Boards Spring conference is scheduled on May 20 and 21, 2014 in Dearborn. The conference is at the Adoba Hotel in Dearborn. The registration form is on line and if anyone is interested in attending, please let us know. We will need to let the Association know who our voting delegates are.
The Rice Memorial Clinic Foundation Board has approved the funding for Taryn Mack and Brian Rendel to receive Mental Health First Aid training. The training is a national model and there are no certified trainers in our area, so this will be a big help in providing community education. Taryn Mack has had several requests for training, and we are grateful to the Rice Foundation for this assistance. Vicki Mikkola stated the Sheriff in Ontonagon has expressed interest in the training and said he would have 5 people that would attend. Mr. Altenburg stated the Sheriff in Ontonagon is a good addition to the community.
Vicki Mikkola stated Dial Help has received a federal grant to provide follow-up assistance to a person with some nature of past or present thoughts of suicide who is discharged from the Emergency Room. Vicki Mikkola stated you might think that anyone with any thoughts of suicide should be hospitalized, but that’s not always the case. Lisa Cunningham has talked to Dial Help and it sounds like they can be fairly “liberal” with the definition when making referrals. Our staff look for real intention, ability and means during the assessment and often they find that there is no imminent risk but the person definitely could benefit from some kind of support or treatment. This service will provide that extra support to people who might otherwise fall through the cracks.
Vicki Mikkola discussed some not so good news regarding the budget. She stated that MDCH insists that the Healthy Michigan Plan will be implemented and services won’t be impacted. However, as Mike Vizena said, “The execution of the plan is fatally flawed.” We received a notice on Monday that the State General Fund monies are being reduced by $89 million that has to be absorbed in the next six months. They have not sent us
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information on what our individual allocation will be, but based on the numbers we got from the Association last week, it could mean up to $500,000 for us at CCMH. The state mental health community is in an uproar, up to and including thoughts about suing the Department. Vicki Mikkola stated the five U.P. CMH Directors and Bill Slavin had a phone conference on Friday and are starting to look at how to put people on waiting lists quickly. Our staff is working diligently at getting every eligible person signed up for Healthy Michigan on April 1, 2014. The Director’s have invited our legislators to meet with them on April 8 in Marquette so they can do further education with them. This cut is going to be painful and we have not had a waiting list for many years. Vicki Mikkola stated we will continue to provide services to our “mandated” population – people with the most severe conditions of mental illness and/or intellectual developmental disorder who have Medicaid or MI Child. We are required to provide the basic emergency services and stabilization and hospitalization when the person meets criteria, as well as assessment of each person to determine where they fall on the scale of severity and need. Undoubtedly, we will be in a situation at the end of the year where we once again need to dip into our reserve fund to cover our expenses for the year.
Mr. Koskinen stated he will be meeting with Representative Dianda at the end of the week and Vicki Mikkola offered to draft some talking points to discuss with him.
FINANCE DIRECTOR’S REPORT FOR JANUARY & FEBRUARY 2014: Susan Serafini, Finance Director, presented the Finance Director’s Report for January and February 2014.
Susan Serafini reviewed the financial information from the February 28, 2014 financial statements with year-to-date information included. The total cash is approximately $8,300,000.00, which is an increase of $200,000 over January, due to there being three payrolls and check-runs in January. The overall Total Net Income is about $132,000, which is a slight decrease from January. In February we sent the quarterly draw down to the State. The General Fund Net Income is reported at about $118,000 versus about $119,000 in January, 2014. We have spent $46,000 on snow removal thus far and last year we spent $42,000 the entire year. The General Fund reported a net loss of $88,000 last year, compared to a gain of $118,000 this year. The General Fund Income Statement revenues are 1 ¼% over budget, due to Medicaid revenue being higher than what was budgeted. The Adult Benefit Waiver program is under budget and we received one more payment in March to total $76,000. The revenue for Healthy Michigan will be added when we know what it will be. Expenses are one-half of 1% over budget, due to mostly increases in utility and plowing costs. Community Inpatient this year is running about 80% on the Medicaid side which is a little better trend. State Inpatient is good as well. Last year’s state inpatient expenses were $225,000 through February and this year’s expenses for State Inpatient are $36,000 through February. We are slightly overspent in Medicaid and will be receiving a little higher allocation from NorthCare. We are able to use General Fund to cover some additional things now. The Board thanked Susan Serafini for her report.