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HomeMy WebLinkAboutResolutions - 2001.12.13 - 26343MISCELLANEOUS RESOLUTION #01330 December 13, 2001 BY: FINANCE COMMITTEE, SUE ANN DOUGLAS, CHAIRPERSON IN RE: DEPARTMENT OF MANAGEMENT AND BUDGET - WAIVER OF PURCHASING POLICY FOR CONTINUATION OF MIHAS PROGRAM TO THE OAKLAND COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS Chairperson, Ladies and Gentlemen: WHEREAS the Comprehensive Planning, Budgeting, and Contracting Agreement (CPBC) between the State of Michigan Department of Community Health and Oakland County contains $150,000 in annual funding for the provision of services to hard to reach pregnant women and infants under the title of Maternal and Infant Health Advocacy Services (MIHAS); and WHEREAS the Oakland Livingston Human Service Agency (OLSHA) has carried out over the past several years these services for residents of Oakland County; and WHEREAS these programs make it possible for at-risk pregnant women and infants to obtain services that otherwise may not be available to them; and WHEREAS the contract period will be for three (3) years, and will comply with all other purchasing policies; and WHEREAS the State Department of Community Health has expressly authorized and requested the continuation of the contractual relationship with OLSHA to provide Maternal and Infant Health Advocacy Services; and NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Oakland County Board of Commissioners hereby waives Purchasing Policy PP-050, regarding the need to conduct another open and competitive bid process. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Board authorizes the Oakland County Health Division to continue its contractual agreement with the Oakland Livingston Human Service Agency for the provision of MIHAS services. Chairperson, on behalf of the Finance Committee, I move the adoption of the foregoing resolution. FINANCE COMMITTEE FINANCE COMMITTEE Motion carried unanimously on a roll call vote. STATE OF MICHIGAN Zak JOHN ENGLER, Governor cerely, TOMO ON IIMVE1/0 MON DEPARTMENT OF COMMUNITY HEALTH • RtteM NOV 1 6 2001 JAMES K. HAVEMAN, JR., Director COMMUNITY LIVING, CHILDREN AND FAMILIES ADMINISTRATION 3423 N. MARTIN L. KING JR. BLVD. PO BOX 30195 LANSING, MI 48909 November 9, 2001 Rosemarie Rowney, RN, MPH Oakland County Health Department 1200 N. Telegraph Road Pontiac, Michigan 48341-0432 Dear Ms. Rowney: The Division of Family and Community Health (DFCH) has been notified that the Oakland County Health Division (OCHD) is planning to "re-bid" the subcontract for the Maternal and Infant Health Advocacy Services (MEHAS) Program currently administered by Oakland-Livingston Human Services. Our Division has several concerns with this decision: Our first and foremost concern involves the continuity of care provided to the clientele of this program. The entire purpose of this program is to provide lasting and continuing peer support for at risk pregnant women. It is very time consuming and labor intensive to develop close relationships between the advocates and their assigned women. It is extremely important not to disrupt already established relationships with existing clients. If a new contractor were identified, staff of a new contractor would need to trained for approximately 6 weeks and subsequently be assigned to newly identified pregnant women. During the training and transition time, there would be expenses for both new and old advocates unless services are discontinued temporarily, which is undesirable. A second concern is that the current contractor, Oaldand-Livingston Human Services, has a proven track record in the delivery of MINAS services. While we appreciate the occasional need to assure costs are scrutinized using market forces applied through competition, we have to recognize the possibility of compromising quality of a proven program. We are concerned with trying to fix something that is working well unless there is strong evidence that costs appear excessive. Thirdly, staff of the Oakland County Health Department have raised concern over language in the CPBC agreement concerning contracting, specifically Part III, Item I. which states. . "that all purchase transactions, whether negotiated or advertised, shall be conducted openly and competitively. . . " Our Division interprets this language to be relevant to goods and services rather that subcontracts for programming. We are under the impression that when MIHAS was first considered for subcontracting, that a process was followed to determine the best provider for services at that time and therefore, selection was in fact made using an open process. With these thoughts in mind, we request that your agency reconsider the need to competitively bid out MEHAS again. If you still feel that a rebid is absolutely necessary, then we would ask that the effective date be delayed for a period of 6 months to allow training of new advocates and transition of clients and that Oakland County absorb the cost of the training and transition to assure that little disruption of services or relationships to the advocates is experienced by the at risk clients. Please let me know your decision regarding the continued provision of MIHAS services. I can be reached at (517) 335-8928. Douglis M. Paterson, Director Division of Family and Community Health Community Living, Children and Families Adm. DMP:js/a:Rowneyltr cc: John Holtz Dennis Lee DCH-0464 9/98 Resolution #01330 December 13, 2001 Moved by Douglas supported by Causey-Mitchell the resolution be adopted. AYES: Causey-Mitchell, Coleman, Crawford, Dingeldey, Douglas, Galloway, Garfield, Gregory, Law, Melton, Moffitt, Moss, Obrecht, Palmer, Patterson, Sever, Suarez, Taub, Webster, Amos, Appel, Brian, Buckley. (23) NAYS: None. (0) A sufficient majority having voted therefore, the resolution was adopted. STATE OF MICHIGAN) COUNTY OF OAKLAND) I, G. William Caddell, Clerk of the County of Oakland, do hereby certify that the foregoing resolution is a true and accurate copy of a resolution adopted by the Oakland County Board of Commissioners on December 13, 2001 with the original record thereof now remaining in my office. In Testimony Whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and affixed the seal of the County of Oakland at Pontiac, Michigan this 13th day of December, 2001.