Commissioners question adult medical day care transportation costs; request provider briefing

Rockingham County commissioners spent an extended portion of their March 26 meeting questioning the county’s adult medical day care expenditures, focusing on transportation costs that officials said consume a large share of the current line item.

"If you look at the bottom, adult medical day care budget of a $100,000, $44,000 is to be used for transportation," a commissioner (speaker 3) said during the discussion, noting that roughly a dozen participants were served in January and questioning the per-person cost. Staff and other commissioners described the current funding as a temporary solution after a pilot program ended and said the county gave the provider a six-month transition period to develop a sustainable plan.

County staff said the provider has requested $120,000–$130,000 next year to cover a full year of transportation plus supplemental program costs and that the transportation line had been moved into the county budget after grant funding tied to the pilot ended. "This was a stop-gap to keep services going while the pilot wound down," the chair said; staff and commissioners agreed to invite Silverthorn to an upcoming meeting to explain how it plans to reduce transportation costs or identify alternative funding.

Several commissioners recommended reviewing whether the expense should be shifted from long-term care to a different budget category or supported through non-county special appropriations and delegation funding. Staff said they would include the provider in next week's agenda or shortly thereafter.

Next step: the board asked staff to invite Silverthorn to present a detailed plan, including expected costs, use of grant funds and any alternate funding sources, at a follow-up meeting.