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DPH director announces new compliance office, hospital naming and special enrollment period; public comment raises contamination concerns
Summary
Director Garcia announced creation of a DPH Office of Compliance and Privacy Affairs, named Maria X Martinez as director, noted the Board accepted a naming gift for San Francisco General Hospital, and flagged a special Covered California enrollment period through April 30, 2015; public commenters raised Hunters Point/Candlestick contamination and access to toxicology expertise.
At the start of the meeting, Department of Public Health Director Garcia gave a report highlighting several administrative and program updates: the Board of Supervisors accepted a gift and approved naming San Francisco General Hospital the Phyllis and Mark Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital and Trauma Center; DPH is establishing an Office of Compliance and Privacy Affairs that will report to the health director and Maria X Martinez was named as its director with Chona Peralta LCSW serving as chief compliance officer. "This office will have centralized oversight for all compliance and privacy throughout the department," Garcia said.
Garcia also noted Covered California—s open enrollment for 2015 closed Feb. 20 but said the federal marketplace had extended a special enrollment period through April 30, 2015 for people unaware of tax penalties for not carrying insurance; eligible persons would still owe 2014 penalty fees but could avoid higher 2015 rates. The director announced Project Homeless Connect events and work on naloxone co-prescribing outreach funded by the California Health Care Foundation.
During public comment, Francisco De Costa (environmental justice advocacy) pressed the Commission about long-running contamination concerns at Hunters Point and the newly raised Candlestick Point issues, asked whether the city employs a qualified toxicologist (not specified in the director—s report) and urged improved use of privacy and information-access processes so constituents can receive fuller responses from the department. "If somebody is sick and gets this type of cancer, blood cancer, it's very, very, very expensive. And our city is not addressing it," De Costa said, urging compassion and action.
Director Garcia and staff answered a handful of follow-up questions about Covered California reporting and the MHSA evaluation; Garcia said DPH is pursuing a contract with Covered California and would provide an update to the Commission on April 7.
