MRDD| BOARD MEETING

Mahoning County Board of Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities approved contracts totaling $6 million for the 2006 year. About two-thirds of the $6 million is a contract, not to exceed $3,797,857, with Northeast Ohio Network to provide 40 percent matching funds and administration costs for Medicaid waivers for some 184 county board clients. A waiver allows the purchase of nonmedical services and supports. Here are some of the contracts approved and other actions taken by the board at its meeting earlier this week. Help Hotline: $27,000 for guardianship services to clients; $12,000 for legal services on behalf of indigent clients.
Rehab Services: $13,500 for counseling and psychological services to clients.
Employees Assistance Services: $3,625 for information, referral and counseling services to agency employees.
Mahoning County Council for Retarded Citizens: $48,000 for a summer camp program; $5,200 for recreational activities.
Transit Services: Not to exceed $300,000 for light transit transportation services that supplement the county board's regular fleet of large buses; fees are paid on a per-trip basis.
Behavior Intervention Training Services: Behavior management training and consultation at $75 per hour, not to exceed $5,000.
Clemans Nelson & amp; Associates: Legal services and labor relations counsel and representation; $175 per month retainer fee and hourly rates ranging from $80 to $120 per hour.
Help Hotline: Dual Diagnosis Project for mental health and mental retardation diagnosed individuals. The jointly funded project costs $32,240 per year and is paid 50 percent each by the county retardation board and the Mahoning County Board of Mental Health.
Burdman Group: Community employment contract serving approximately 27 mental retardation board clients in community work sites, not to exceed $151,603.
Advanced Rehabilitation Management: Two contracts: Adult physical therapy services, not to exceed $70,000; and adult occupational therapy services, not to exceed $75,000.
Mahoning Adult Services Corp.: Contract not to exceed $252,245 to employ approximately 35 mental retardation board clients as program aides within county board programs performing various duties for the agency and its clients.
Turning Point Residential: Adult day program and transportation services for 15 county retardation board clients, not to exceed $264,600.
ISLE: Adult day program services and transportation for 45 county retardation board clients, not to exceed $793,800.
ArcRae: Family respite services for the period Jan. 1 to June 30, 2006, not to exceed $160,500.
In other action, the board:
Entered into a contract with the Youngstown Developmental Center and Ohio Department of Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities to serve 37 Youngstown Developmental Center clients at county board sheltered workshops. The contract is a continuation of the current agreement. Based on the current rate of reimbursement, the county board would receive $758,396 but would provide the 40 percent matching funds for the reimbursement out of that amount.
Approved a contract with Consumer Support Services, a private county board provider, which pays $45.24 per day per individual for adult day services to some 26 individuals residing in Consumer Support Services' residential intermediate care facilities.
Approved a general agreement with the Mahoning Adult Services Corp. at no cost for Jan. 1 through Dec. 31, 2006. The Mahoning Adult Services Corp. is the nonprofit affiliate agency that employs county board clients who attend the adult workshops and are paid for the sheltered employment work they perform.
Adopted the Medicaid Waiver Administration and Medicaid Financial Obligations agreements for the period from Jan. 1 to June 30, 2006. The two agreements define the local authority of county boards with regard to Medicaid waiver programs administration and spell out the responsibility for payment of the 40 percent matching funds requirements for current Medicaid waivers and future waivers that may become available to the county board, said Larry Duck, MRDD superintendent.
Awarded a $58,700 contract for gymnasium floor replacement at Leonard Kirtz School.
Awarded a $19,040 contract for swimming pool renovation work at Leonard Kirtz School to DSV Builders, Warren.
Authorized the superintendent to submit a tentative budget for calendar year 2006 to Mahoning County, contingent on final board approval of the 2006 budget at the board's January 2006 meeting. Projected revenues for 2006 are about $22 million. The county board's policy, adopted in 2004, says that the board will not approve deficit spending, meaning the 2006 operating budget cannot exceed $22 million.