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Franklin County authorizes mutual aid, closed PODs and retention incentives to bolster public‑health preparedness
Summary
The Legislature authorized mutual aid agreements for surge capacity, allowed organizations to become Closed Points of Dispensing (PODs), and approved retention incentives for contracted therapists and home health aides funded through HCWRRA and related funds.
Franklin County lawmakers on Dec. 19 adopted a set of public‑health preparedness measures, authorizing mutual aid agreements, closed Points of Dispensing (POD) arrangements and targeted retention incentives for contracted therapists and home health aides.
Resolution No. 352 authorized the County Manager, with County Attorney approval, to sign mutual aid agreements with other counties to provide surge capacity and share public‑health preparedness resources. Resolution No. 353 authorized memorandums of understanding with organizations that agree to operate Closed PODs to dispense medical countermeasures (MCMs) to their employees, families and clients; Resolution No. 354 authorized a Closed POD plan for Franklin County government to ensure internal access to countermeasures for employees and their families during declared public‑health emergencies.
Resolution No. 355 authorized Public Health to enter into standard 2020 contracts with county agencies and professional organizations. The Legislature also approved two retention measures: Resolution No. 356 permits use of Health Care Worker Recruitment and Retention (HCWRRA) funds to provide retention incentives to current contracted therapists at $7.00 per Medicaid therapy visit (contingent on HCWRRA funding and capped in the minutes at $6,664 total for the program); Resolution No. 357 authorizes retention incentives for Home Health Aides calculated at 7.70% of the aide’s contracted hourly rate multiplied by the number of Medicaid hours worked (contingent on continued HCWRRA funding). Resolution No. 358 adopted agency policies recommended by the Professional Advisory Committee.
All measures passed unanimously as recorded in the minutes. The resolutions authorize the County Manager and Public Health director, following County Attorney review, to execute the necessary agreements and implement the retention incentives in compliance with available grant funding.
