Human Services lays out opioid-abatement vans, SNAP/Medicaid workload risks and staffing requests
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Summary
Human Services Director Ali Smith described opioid-abatement collaborations (prevention vans, a regional 'Wow Van' treatment van) and warned of federal SNAP and Medicaid policy changes (expanded work requirements, cost-share on error rates) that will raise local workload; she requested a small number of new positions and described staffing vacancies affecting caseloads.
Ali Smith, director of Human Services, briefed the council on program priorities and policy risks affecting service delivery. "A big item for us is the opioid abatement programs," she said, summarizing coordinated efforts with police, EMS, health and schools that include prevention vans and a regional treatment "Wow Van" staffed by clinical personnel. Smith said both vans are expected to be operational in about six months and will be shared on a regional schedule.
Smith warned council about impending federal changes to SNAP and Medicaid that could shift costs and administrative burdens to localities: work requirements for some SNAP recipients will expand, and states with error rates above federal thresholds will face a federal cost-share starting in October 2027. She said Virginia's current error rate is about 10.49% and that the changes could materially affect program funding and staff workload. On Medicaid, Smith said roughly 88,000 Virginia Beach residents are on Medicaid, of whom about 26,000 are expansion enrollees who will face more frequent reassessments and an 80-hour-per-month work/training expectation once new rules take effect.
To respond, Smith asked for modest staffing adjustments: one family support specialist (state to pick up ~65% of cost) and two benefit program assistants to be funded by reductions in contract staff. She said the division currently has about 11 vacancies and that caseloads run between 1,100 and 1,300 per benefits worker, far above recommended levels.
Council members pressed on notification for purged waiting-list applicants and on options for volunteer or hybrid work that could meet future SNAP work requirements; Smith said the department reaches out three times before purging and is exploring volunteer options and other pathways to meet the 80-hour expectation.
No formal action was taken; staff will return with more detail as budget reconciliation proceeds.
