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Sawyer County HHS: economic-support caseloads, call-center waits and grant oversight discussed
Summary
At the March 11 Sawyer County HHS Board meeting, economic support staff reported FoodShare and Medicaid caseloads, call-center volume, and processing performance; fiscal staff explained apparent overspending as grant or carryover timing; members discussed grant renewability and a planned trip to study jail-based mental-health programs.
Sawyer County Health and Human Services on March 11 reviewed economic-support caseload figures and fiscal reports, and discussed grant timing and oversight.
Shauna, an economic-support staff member, reported January figures: 1,123 FoodShare cases serving about 1,959 recipients, $290,000 in FoodShare benefits issued for the month, 2,595 Medicaid cases serving about 4,082 recipients, and strong processing performance (100% on Medicaid applications and renewals; FoodShare renewals and six-month reports over 95%). The consortium call center answered 7,882 calls in January with a longest wait time of 62 minutes; staff said some local walk-in traffic increased when the call center closed part of the day.
“Right now, the state is providing us with some talking points to help our members,” Shauna said, advising the board that as of the meeting no cuts had been applied to Medicaid or March FoodShare benefits; staff characterized the reports in the meeting as reflecting proposed budget discussion at the state level with a vote expected March 14.
Fiscal staff explained why some purchase-service lines show overspending: funds arrived after the county budget process or were transferred into the new year, creating the appearance of overspend even though those costs are covered by grants or carryover funding. Staff suggested adding clarifying notes or an asterisk on the report to show when expenditures are grant-funded or carried forward.
Board members asked about grant renewability. Staff said the diversion grants that fund Sirona Recovery’s two youth workers are federal awards that the department expects may be renewable up to four years but noted uncertainty pending federal/state budget decisions. Carrie Mann, the deputy director, was identified as taking a lead role in writing and managing many of the department’s grant proposals.
Board members also learned that Julie and other staff will travel next week to New Mexico to study jail-based mental-health and medication-assisted therapy programs; the trip is funded by grant dollars and not county funds.
Ending: The board accepted reports and discussed adding clearer fiscal annotations on future purchase-service and receipt reports; no formal budget votes were taken at the meeting.
