REPORT/RECOMMENDATION TO THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS
OF SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY
AND RECORD OF ACTION
August 20, 2024
FROM
JEANY ZEPEDA, Director, Children and Family Services
SUBJECT
Title
Amendment to Contract with The Heart Matters Foster Family Agency for Placement Services
End
RECOMMENDATION(S)
Recommendation
Approve Amendment No. 1 to Contract No. 23-1095, including a nonstandard term, with The Heart Matters Foster Family Agency to provide placement services for youth requiring Enhanced-Intensive Services Foster Care, increasing the total contract amount by $1,833,333, from $500,000 to $2,333,333, and extending the contract term by 44 months, for a total period of October 3, 2023 through June 30, 2028.
(Presenter: Jeany Zepeda, Director, 387-2792)
Body
COUNTY AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER GOALS & OBJECTIVES
Provide for the Safety, Health, and Social Service Needs of County Residents.
Pursue County Goals and Objectives by Working with Other Agencies and Stakeholders.
FINANCIAL IMPACT
Approval of this item will not result in the use of Discretionary General Funding (Net County Cost). The total cost of Enhanced-Intensive Services Foster Care (E-ISFC) will not exceed $2,333,333 and is funded by the Complex Care Capacity Building State Allocation, which is funded 100% with federal and state revenue. Adequate appropriation and revenue have been included in the Human Services Administrative Claim 2024-25 budget and will be included in future recommended budgets.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
Currently, there is a shortage of foster homes for youth who have complex placement needs. Due to the continuum of care reform, many of the Short Term Residential Therapy Programs (STRTP) that would have taken these youth no longer exist. Many of these youth have a history of multiple unsuccessful placements. They may be difficult to place because they have been severely traumatized, are Seriously Emotionally Disturbed, developmentally delayed, verbally and/or physically aggressive, violent toward others, display Commercially Sexually Exploited Children behaviors, go Absent Without Leave, have substance abuse issues, Special Health Care Needs, or multi-occurring needs. These youth require a higher level of care and supervision, as well as specialized treatment based upon their specific needs. Many foster parents do not have the skills or training to provide the services these youth require.
Amendment No. 1 (Amendment) to Contract No. 23-1095 (Contract) with The Heart Matters Foster Family Agency (THMFFA) will continue the guarantee of up to 10 fully licensed E-ISFC beds for Children and Family Services’ (CFS) utilization at homes throughout the county. In addition, the Amendment allows CFS to continue working to build capacity and increase the number of beds available, up to 10. The guaranteed beds will be used solely to provide specialized placements for E-ISFC youth while offering home based treatment depending on their needs. These foster homes provide a safe place for E-ISFC youth to receive needed help with minimal influence from outside sources.
Access to E-ISFC homes that can supply the home based specialized care, supervision, and treatment needed for these youth will increase the County’s ability to effectively provide stability to these youth through successful foster placements. The full monthly price of $15,281 per bed is paid to THMFFA to ensure the bed is available for use. When CFS places a youth in a bed, CFS only pays the portion of the $15,281 not covered by other payment sources, such as the Foster Care program and Medi-Cal. Based upon the availability of other funding sources, CFS anticipates the annual expenditure will be between $367,000 and $500,000 annually.
The Amendment includes a term that differs from the standard County contract. While the parties negotiated certain contract terms to County standards, the two largest insurance carriers for nonprofit organizations do not offer insurance coverage to homes with water features at the levels the County standard terms require. The nonstandard and missing term includes the following:
The aggregate insurance limit for losses specific to losses, damages, and/or liability from a foster child’s use, intentional or otherwise, of a body of water is at least $250,000.
• The County standard insurance coverage limits for General Liability Insurance are $1,000,000 per occurrence and $2,000,000 aggregate .
• Potential Impact: By agreeing to the lower aggregate limit for losses, damages, or liability from a foster child’s use, intentional or otherwise, of a body of water, the County is limiting its financial protection. County Risk Management has approved the non-standard coverage.
CFS recommends approval of the Amendment, including the nonstandard term, to allow CFS to continue to provide E-ISFC services to children throughout the county.
On October 3, 2023 (Item No. 14), as the result of a formal procurement, the Board of Supervisors approved the Contract with THMFFA for placement services for youth requiring E-ISFC, from October 3, 2023 through October 31, 2024, at a total contract amount of $500,000.
The Contract performance is monitored by review of monthly reports and regular site visits to ensure compliance with the administrative, program, and fiscal terms and conditions of the Contract. CFS Budget and Administrative Services reviews the invoices prior to payment. The Contract may be terminated without cause by the County with 30 days written notice.
PROCUREMENT
N/A
REVIEW BY OTHERS
This item has been reviewed by Human Services Contracts (Patty Steven, Contracts Manager, 388-0241) on July 22, 2024; County Counsel (Daniella Hernandez, Deputy County Counsel, 387-5455) on July 10, 2024; Risk Management (Gregory Ustaszewski, Staff Analyst II, 386-9008) on July, 24, 2024; Finance (John Hallen, Administrative Analyst III, 388-0208) on August 5, 2024; and County Finance and Administration (Cheryl Adams, Deputy Executive Officer, 388-0238) on August 5, 2024.