Cook County Health and Hospitals System Board Meeting—December 18, 2009

Public comment: A representative of Nursing reiterated complaints about morale and staffing; a citizen reminded the Board, at length, of the "political atmosphere" in which they operate.

CEO Foley introduced Salim Al-Nurridin from the Health Care Consortium who was very involved in organizing the Town Meetings. In his review, he rated them generally positive in process and was complimentary to the Board on progress that has been made. The consultant's contract was extended with a projected end to the Strategic Planning process by June.

The new Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Terry Mason, was introduced. He comes from the Chicago Board of Health.

Discussion of a Settlement Agreement with the Health Facilities Planning Board continues.

Discussions have begun with the State on providing mental health services to replace closure of the Tinley Park facility. Oak Forest site is a possibility.

Dr. John Raba, who has been the interim Chief Medical Officer for the past 15 months, reviewed accomplishments during his tenure: service integration across facilities, partnering with FQHCs in Pediatrics, a Quality/Safety committee, improved clinical leadership, adjustments to salary inequities, increased accountability and productivity, all facilities accredited, with Cermak developing the "best team in the country".

Responding to a Board member inquiry, the H1N1 immunization rate for employees overall is reported as 51% (which includes persons declining for medical reasons). March 1 is the deadline for 100% implementation. More education is needed. Some delay was due to problems with supply.

In the process of adopting December minutes from the Finance Committee, a discussion of the proposed redevelopment of the historic Cook County Main Building for System administrative offices revealed confusion among Board members on the issue. Member Butler, who is a Cook County Commissioner, took a strong position that the cost involved in rehabbing the building versus new construction was wasteful, and the Board initially was swayed to agree. When further explanation was provided, that the building has National Historic recognition and cannot therefore be demolished and when they found that failing to accept the proposed site would mean their offices would be moved off campus, a subsequent motion passed saying they would move into any facility on campus. Staff must be relocated from their present location at 1900 W. Polk because the building is considered unsafe.

The Cook County Contract Compliance Officer reviewed the progress on implementing ordinances that relate to Women and Minority businesses. Workshops have been conducted to explain to these owners General Purpose contracts and how to participate in them.

Resolutions were adopted honoring Valerie L. Webb who has been elected President of the Illinois Public Health Association and Dr. Linda Rae Murray who is President-elect of the American Public Health Assn.

More on the Cook County Board Meeting December 15, 2009

The Board voted that Ridgewood High School, Elk Grove High School and Carpenter Elementary School should have installed a sound insulation system for a proper learning environment. This is necessary because of their proximity to O'Hare International Airport air traffic noise.

The Board discussed establishing Veteran Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) Screening and Benefit Fairs in Illinois. It is estimated that more than 300,000 deployed since 9/ll suffer from PTSD. The number of cases are expected to climb according to a new study conducted by Stanford University. The Board of Commissioners of Cook County directed that the Cook County Veterans Assistance Commission shall coordinate the PTSD screening and benefit fairs in each Commissioners' district every two years. The screening and benefit fairs will be located in National Guard armories. If none is available, an alternate, suitable location should be chosen.

The Health Bureau is expected to spend 95% of its budget this year. There is no danger of closing any health facilities this year. There may be concern in the future because less money may be coming in. County Hospital received $32.l million in patient fees this past year, which is up from last year.

There was a lengthy discussion about the Juvenile Temporary Detention Center (JTDC). Earl Dunlap, the Director, was appointed in 2006. Mr. Dennis McGomry, is the newly appointed Director of the Fiscal Policy. The Cook County Board has questions about the Procurement Process. Some bills have not gone through this process. Some bills have not gone to the lowest bidder. The Cook County Board questioned the JTDC fiscal policy and would like to invite Mr. Dunlap to appear before them. The Juvenile Temporary Detention Center has 360-400 children daily. Eighty per cent have mental health problems. The contract is $l6 million annually.

--Submitted by Observer Arline Doblin

Dec 2 2009 Forest Preserve Meeting

When the meeting opened, Comm. Timothy Schneider had a resolution read into the minutes congratulating Motorola’s Global Day of Service, October 14, 2009 at Busse Woods.

Working with Friends of the Parks and the Forest Preserve District, 400 Motorola employees provided 1200 hours clearing litter and invasive Buckthorn.

Comm. Larry Suffredin reported that the annual New Year’s Day canoe trip will be on schedule and open to the public. Meeting point is Forestway Drive north of Willow Road and east of the Edens. Staggered starting time beings at 7:00 am, the last start will be 11:00 am. The trip takes about 3 hours and buses are at the destination, Linne Woods, for the return trip. It is a bring-your-own-boat event.

Detailed info is available by emailing wkoenig at cookcountgov.com

Always of interest is the Forest Preserve website www.soclose2you.org.

Mary Ann Tate
December 15, 2009

Action and Concerns about the VA, JTDC, and HHS at Dec. 15 Cook County Board Meeting

The December 15th meeting of the Cook County Board of Commissioners centered on a new program at the Cook County Veterans Assistance Commission, questions about policy at the Juvenile Temporary Detention Center, and finances at the Health and Hospital System.

First off, a resolution by Comm. Reyes et al. was passed that provides veteran PTSD screenings and job benefit fairs ( to be located in National Guard armories in each commissioner's district) for the purpose of helping veterans. The county Veterans Assistance Commission will coordinate this with various other veteran organizations. The VA Hospital and HHS are on-board with this.

Numerous concerns were expressed about the Juvenile Temporary Detention Center (JTDC). Comm. Peraica questioned another $500,000 (for a total of $2.8 million) being requested by Transitional Administrator (TA) Earl Dunlap of the JTDC. This $2.8 million is not in the JTDC budget (which is $41 million), but rather comes from the county self-insurance fund--due to the long-standing court orders. He wondered if this money was being audited and had oversight. CFO, Jaye Williams, questioned why established procedures on bids were not always used by Dunlap. Temporary Administrator Dunlap came later in the meeting and explained that his was a completely transparent administration and anyone could check the finances. He said lowest bid is not always used because he wants to continue mental health services with a proven organization (eg. Isaac Ray Center) that has already been doing a good job with the JTDC. His goal has been to move juveniles out of the JTDC into more appropriate community settings for their drug and mental health issues. This works better and is much more cost-effective.

The Health and Hospital System (HHS) is down on their revenues (patient fees) but expenditures are also down. It is estimated that HHS will expend 95% of their budget by the end of the fiscal year. Several commissioners pointed out that the scare tactics about HHS closing facilities because of the .5% sales tax rollback are misguided.

The Dec. 1 Cook County Board meeting began with Commissioner Daly calling the Finance Committee to order. Commissioner Peraica stated that the Shakman Decree is basically a corruption tax which is currently costing the taxpayers of Cook County five million dollars. Commissioner Silvestri raised the issue of the in-house desk audit versus the professional audit, and Commissioner Daly stated that no desk audit was required.
The committee then discussed the lawsuit filed against Superintendent Dr. Charles A. Flowers and the Suburban Cook County Regional Office of Education. Commissioner Peraica questioned the State’s Attorney’s representation of the Suburban Cook County Regional Office of Education in the case. He suggested that perhaps the Attorney General provide the counsel so that a conflict of interest will be averted. A roll call vote was taken to determine where each commissioner stood on this matter. Although four commissioners voted that the State’s Attorney should not provide legal services for the Regional Board of Education, the motion passed.
The necessity to reform Workman’s Compensation was discussed, including the complexity of union negotiations in distributing payments. Commissioner Gainer pointed out that the Board has an opportunity to deal with this issue in the very near future, as negotiations will be conducted soon. Another cost discussed was the repair of county vehicles and the methods of awarding contracts to fix them. It was concluded that more uniformity is needed with all of the vehicles. One way the county has reduced costs in repairing county vehicles is by conducting minor maintenance repair internally while sending major repairs out. The number of contracts to outside maintenance repair businesses has decreased since the county has adopted this more cost-efficient method of repairing its vehicles. Commissioner Gosling suggested reviewing the Vehicle Policy, of which he was an original creator.
When President Stroger arrived at 11:30, role was called again. Reverend Rand, a local pastor of the Methodist Church had the invocation, and a resolution for Commissioner Suffredin’s father was read. The commissioners expressed their condolences to Commissioner Suffredin on the recent passing of his father, formerly of Westchester, Illinois. The repeal of the sales tax was discussed. Each commissioner gave his/her opinion on the upcoming vote to override President Stroger’s veto of the Cook County sales tax reduction. Commissioner Daley stated that reducing the sales tax will ensure the rebooting of Cook County government. Commissioner Gainer stated that reducing the sales tax will force Cook County governmental officials to re-examine how they spend tax payers’ money. She cited that salaries in the county are particularly high in comparison to the pace and distribution of salary increases in the private sector. This is one place the county can make cuts. William Foley, CEO of Cook County Health and Hospitals System, stated that the Health and Hospitals System reduced their budget by 70 million dollars already.
For the first time in the history of Cook County government, the Board of Commissioners successfully overrode a President’s veto. With a vote of 12-5, the commissioners invalidated President Stroger’s veto of their tax repeal. Those who voted NOT to override President Stroger’s veto of reducing the Cook County sales tax are Commissioner Beavers, Butler, Murphy, Sims, and Moreno.