LAWRENCE COUNTY New health plan at jail will save about $30,000

Officials are looking at hiring a consulting firm to help with Hill View Manor.
By LAURE CIOFFI
VINDICATOR NEW CASTLE BUREAU
NEW CASTLE, Pa. -- Lawrence County commissioners expect to save about $30,000 a year with a new company hired to provide health care at the county jail.
Commissioner Brian Burick, chairman of the county prison board, said Southern Health Partners of Chattanooga, Tenn., will start service Dec. 1.
A letter will be sent to Prime Care of Harrisburg informing that its services will no longer be needed.
Burick said the cost of medical care with the new company varies depending on the number of inmates. But if the number of jailed inmates remains the same as it is now, the cost will be $30,000 per year less with the new company.
Burick noted that the county started looking for a new provider because it was not satisfied with the care given by Prime Care.
He said neighboring Beaver County uses Southern Health Partners at its jail and recommended it.
Financial consulting
County commissioners are also considering hiring ZA Consulting to perform the duties of the chief financial officer at Hill View Manor, the county nursing home.
ZA Consulting of Harrisburg was hired last month to perform an audit of the home after a sale to private buyers ended. The company found that more than $500,000 in county money had been deposited into the buyer's private bank account. All but about $140,000 has been returned to the county, ZA Consulting reported.
The company has offered to provide financial help on a month-to-month basis. The cost is $5,500 per month but can be reduced to $4,500 per month by cutting a day from the on-site visits.
The home's chief financial officer was put on paid administrative leave after commissioners discovered the money in the private buyer's bank account.
Burick said commissioners were to have met with the county solicitor Thursday to talk about the CFO's status and to determine if they needed to hire ZA Consulting.
cioffi@vindy.com