SUMMARY MINUTES
BOARD OF TRUSTEES
INDIAN RIVER COUNTY HOSPITAL DISTRICT
REGULAR MONTHLY MEETING
County Commissioner Chambers/ Zoom
June 17, 2021 at 4:00 PM
TRUSTEES: Allen Jones Kerry Bartlett
Ann Marie McCrystal Marybeth Cunningham
Michael Weiss Karen Deigl
ABSENT: Barb Bodnar
STAFF: Kate Voss Jennifer Frederick
Jennifer Peshke, Esq. Ann Marie Suriano
Convene Meeting – Marybeth Cunningham, Chair
Ms. Cunningham convened the regular monthly meeting of the IRCHD at 4:00 PM by welcoming those in attendance and via Zoom. Reverend Moore provided an invocation and Dr. Weiss led the group in the pledge of allegiance.
Consent Agenda- Marybeth Cunningham, Chair
Mrs. Cunningham asked for a motion to approve the budget presentation meeting minutes dated May 12; Chairman’s meeting minutes dated May 19; regular monthly meeting minutes dated May 20, and a June disbursement of $1,133,815.04. Mrs. McCrystal made the motion to approve, which was seconded by Ms. Deigl. The motion carried unanimously. Mrs. Cunningham encouraged members of the public to obtain their COVID-19 vaccine, if they have not already done so. She stated that the District board has been busy attending budget request meetings over the last month, to develop a budget for FY 21-22.
District Counsel Report – Jennifer Peshke, Esq.
Mrs. Peshke provided her District counsel report and stated that this last month she attended all regular scheduled and budget presentation meetings. She has reviewed house bill 1103 summary as it relates to auditing and reporting additional requirements that will be required of Special Districts and will bring forth information when necessary to further discuss at our workshop to be scheduled on this matter. Lastly, she is still working with CCIRH counsel on the 11th drive right of way, and it waiting receive final transaction documents on this matter.
Financial Statement Review- Allen Jones, Treasurer
Mr. Jones stated that as of May 31st, the District’s collective cash and investments totaled about $10.6 million, less the $1.1 million in monthly expenses, which leaves approximately $9.5 million left in the District account. For the remaining balance of the year, the District has budgeted total expenses of a little over $4 million. This implies, the District will finish the fiscal year with over $5 million in reserves to carry over to the next fiscal year. He explained that at yesterday’s Chairman’s meeting, the Trustees had a discussion about potential volatility of appraised property values. He believes having those extra reserves help mitigate the volatility of millage rates in the event of a decline in property values. He stated that the District is now in the midst of the budget preparations for the upcoming fiscal year. Important upcoming dates for the public to keep in mind are July 15, September 9 and 23. Mr. Jones explained that at the July 15 meeting the District will approve a tentative budget with a proposed millage and roll-back rate. The board will then have until September 9th to continue to analyze and debate the elements of the budget, as well as listen to public comment. On September 9th, the District will vote to approve a budget with a millage no higher than that proposed in July, and possibly approve a lower rate. Then there will then be two more weeks for further analysis and public comment. On September 23, the District board will have a final vote to adopt the budget for fiscal year 2021/22.
Mr. Jones stated that between now and September, the board has important strategic decisions to make on how best to impact improving health outcomes for residents in the county. Importantly, the District will need to use data to show how that improvement is occurring. He believes it is an important opportunity this board has and he wants to make sure that they we will rise to the level of fiduciary responsibility as this group has in the past.
Funded Agencies Semi Annual Report-
Whole Family Health Center- Marie Andress, CEO
Mrs. Andress addressed the board and thanked them for their continued support of Whole Family Health Center (“WFHC”). She stated that while the COVID-19 pandemic caused many challenges for healthcare agencies, she felt that this community came together collaboratively and has created strong working relationships which will help improve healthcare throughout the county. She discussed the services offered through WFHC and stated that Dr. Pierone has also conducted research studies on COVID-19 treatment. Through his study they treated 130 active COVID patients, with successful results and no hospitalizations. She further reviewed in detail their funding utilization schedule and patient volume data. For the last 6 months, WFHC has seen a 32% increase in primary care services and 144% increase in behavioral health services. They continue to see growth at both their Vero Beach and Fort Peirce location and have recorded a 20% growth overall. Next Ms. Andress discussed the center’s quality performance metrics. She explained that the center fell short on all of their quality metrics, which were adversely affected by COVID. She stated that due to the fact many visits were conducted via telehealth versus in person, this prevented them from measuring blood pressure, A1C levels, etc. Additionally, there were patient care challenges. The access to the call center was taxed due to demand for COVID testing and vaccines. There were also challenges due to lack of staff and increased costs and higher wages to attract and retain new staff. She maintained that WFHC is working to improve these metrics and is now required to report quarterly to HERSA, with quality meterics data. She further discussed WFHC’s impact on the community during the COVID crisis and the services they provided. They have also recruited 5 new providers to their clinic and have just hired one psychiatric nurse practitioner. Lastly, she discussed their future initiatives for the center and explained that renovations and an expansion are underway at the Fort Peirce center. They are also constructing additional space for research studies. WFHC board also completed its next three-year strategic plan which she provided a copy of, to the Trustees.
VNA- Patricia Knipper, Director
Ms. Knipper provided a 6-month overview of District funded programs and services at the VNA. She gave an overall funding review and stated that VNA has changed the screening process for home health visits and have been able to qualify more patients as District eligible. Previously many of these patients were being reimbursed through the VNA foundation for charity care, but were actually eligible for District financial assistance. She further reviewed the VNA’s quality scores for their service lines which are collected through Strategic Healthcare Programs. She then discussed the Mobile Health Clinic and Positive Change program data. She explained that VNA and Substance Awareness Center have collaborated to bring new initiatives to the Positive Change Program. She reviewed the session focus areas which included smoking cessation; exercise and nutrition; medication; and dental hygiene. Lastly, she discussed her work with Together for Health and stated that the group has doubled in size during the pandemic, averaging 35-50 participants each virtual meeting. This groups brings together community leaders to share information, resources, experiences, and strategies to address health and wellness needs in the community with emphasis on outreach and education for vulnerable individuals and families. The Trustees recognized Ms. Knipper for her work on Together for Health and stated that it has been an extremely valuable resource for the community and brought together true collaboration for the greater good.
Public Comment/Adjourn
There was no public comment and the meeting was adjourned at 5:30 PM
