REPORT/RECOMMENDATION TO THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS
OF THE COUNTY OF SAN BERNARDINO
AND RECORD OF ACTION
May 4, 2021
FROM
VERONICA KELLEY, Director, Department of Behavioral Health
SUBJECT
Title v
Amendments to Contracts for Foster Family Agency - Mental Health Services Program
End
RECOMMENDATION(S)
Recommendation
Approve Amendment No. 3, effective July 1, 2021, to the following contracts for the Foster Family Agency - Mental Health Services program, increasing the total aggregate contract amount by $1,979,453, from $17,794,525 to $19,773,978, and extending the contracts for an additional six month period from June 30, 2021, for the total contract period of July 1, 2016 through December 31, 2021:
1. ChildNet Youth and Family Services, Inc., Contract No. 16-525
2. Greater Hope Foundation for Children, Inc., Contract No. 16-528
3. Koinonia Family Services, Contract, No. 16-529
4. Nuevo Amanecer Latino Children’s Services, Contract No. 16-530
5. Seneca Family of Agencies, Contract No. 16-532
6. Trinity Youth Services, Contract No. 16-533
7. Walden Family Services, Contract No. 16-534
(Presenter: Veronica Kelley, Director, 388-0801)
Body
COUNTY AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER GOALS & OBJECTIVES
Provide for the Health and Social Services Needs of County Residents.
FINANCIAL IMPACT
This item does not impact Discretionary General Funding (Net County Cost). The increase of $1,979,453 to the total aggregate amount for Foster Family Agency - Mental Health Services program (FFA-MHS) will be utilized to continue Therapeutic Foster Care (TFC) and Early and Periodic Screening, Diagnosis, and Treatment Medi-Cal Specialty Mental Health Services (Medi-Cal SMHS) in 2021-22. These services are funded by Medi-Cal Federal Financial Participation, 2011 Realignment, and Children and Family Services (CFS) funding. Adequate appropriation and revenue will be included in the Department of Behavioral Health’s (DBH) 2021-22 recommended budget.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
FFA-MHS is a program that serves children/youth who are Dependents or Wards of the Court and placed with a Foster Family Agency for residential services. Medi-Cal SMHS provides comprehensive and preventive health services, including specialty mental health services, to Medi-Cal beneficiaries under the age of 21 who have full scope Medi-Cal eligibility; TFC is a required (Katie A. Settlement) Medi-Cal SMHS that provides intensive and frequent mental health support in a family environment to children/youth. DBH is requesting an extension to the FFA contracts in order to complete the procurement process under way for these services, which had been delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Upon approval of the recommended amendments, DBH anticipates that FFA-MHS services will be provided to approximately 185 children/youth at an estimated cost of $10,728 per child/youth.
DBH is responsible for providing mental health and/or substance use disorder services to San Bernardino County residents who are experiencing major mental illness and/or substance use disorders. An integral part of the service delivery system consists of County operated and contracted service providers delivering a variety of mental health treatment services, including specialized services for children/youth.
DBH and CFS are respectively responsible for meeting the mental health and residential treatment needs of children/youth in their care. Through a variety of programs, DBH and CFS have collaborated to provide an appropriate alternative to residential placement and keep children/youth with their family. However, for some children/youth the level of need is high enough that placement with a FFA is needed.
Core services are provided by FFAs to children/youth and their families that encompass community services; physical, behavioral, and mental health support services; access to services, including specialty mental health services; educational, life, and social support; transitional support services for permanent residency; services for transitional-aged youth and minor dependents; and trauma-informed practices, support, and treatment services. TFC is short-term, intensive, highly coordinated, trauma-informed, and individualized intervention provided by a TFC resource parent to a child or youth who has complex emotional and behavioral needs. The purpose of TFC is to help children/youth step down from a Short-Term Residential Treatment Program, or maintain their placement with a resource family. FFAs are required to have a Mental Health Certification from the California Department of Health Care Services.
PROCUREMENT
On June 28, 2016 (Item No. 21), as the result of a formal procurement, the Board of Supervisors (Board) approved 12 contracts to provide FFA Mental Health Services, which included the contracts in the Recommendation, in an aggregate amount not to exceed $8,876,715, for the period of July 1, 2016 through June 30, 2019, with two one-year extension options contingent upon funding and contractor performance. Since the start of the FFA-MHS program on July 1, 2016, 10 agencies completed trainings on Medi-Cal Certification, service delivery, documentation and billing processes. Due to some agencies deciding to no longer provide services, there are currently eight agencies providing FFA-MHS program services.
On February 12, 2019 (Item No. 16), the Board approved Amendment No. 1 to the contracts in the Recommendation, adding the TFC service component, increasing the total aggregate contract amount by $4,958,905 from $8,876,715 to $13,835,620, and exercising the first one-year extension option extending the contracts through June 30, 2020.
On June 23, 2020 (Item No. 31), the Board approved Amendment No. 2 to the contracts, updating the standard contract language, increasing the total aggregate contract amount by $3,958,905 from $13,835,620 to $17,794,525, and exercising the final one-year extension option, extending the contracts through June 30, 2021.
The recommended amendment to the contracts for FFA-MHS will increase the total aggregate contract amount by $1,979,453 to $19,773,978, and extend the contracts by six months, for a total contract period of July 1, 2016 through December 31, 2021. DBH will continue to monitor contract performance on a regular basis to ensure compliance standards are met.
REVIEW BY OTHERS
This item has been reviewed by Behavioral Health Contracts (Ellayna Hoatson, Contracts Supervisor, 388-0869) on April 1, 2021; County Counsel (Dawn Martin, Deputy County Counsel, 387-5455) on April 9, 2021; Finance (Christopher Lange, Administrative Analyst, 386-8393) on April 13, 2021; and County Finance and Administration (Tanya Bratton, Deputy Executive Officer, 388-0332) on April 14, 2021.