Karuk Tribe of California
Health Board Meeting Minutes
May 12, 2005
Happy Camp, California
Ayukii,
The meeting was called to order at 5:08 PM by Arch Super, Chairman.
Roll Call
Present
Arch Super, Chairman
Leaf Hillman, Vice Chairman
Florrine Super, Secretary
Leeon Hillman, Treasurer
Roy Arwood, Member
Florence Conrad, Member
Robert Goodwin, Member
Robert Grant, Member
Alvis Johnson, Member
Quorum is established.
The Health Mission Statement was read aloud by Florrine Super.
Approval of the Agenda for May 12, 2005
Leaf Hillman moved and Robert Goodwin seconded to approve the Agenda for May 12, 2005. 8 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 pupitihara.
1) Approval of the Minutes for April 14, 2005
The minutes will be tabled.
2) David Tripp
David thanked the Council for all of their support of the Jump Dance. They would like to request similar assistance for this year’s dance that they have provided in previous years. The expenditures for last year were $6,840.31 and were paid from State Indian Health Funds. The dance will be held this year from August 5, 2005 through August 14, 2005. He let them know who is on the Jump Dance Council for this year. Florrine states that Tribal Members call each year to ask for directions to the dance and she wanted to know if he can send information about where it will be; directions, any special requirements/protocols of those Tribal Members that will be attending to let them know.
Florence Conrad moved and Florrine Super seconded to obligate $7,000 of State Indian Health dollars toward the 2005 Jump Dance. 8 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 pupitihara.
3) Susan Gehr
Susan was present to request approval of Contract 05-C-047 with Blanche Keller in the amount of $600 to provide cooking services for the Language Teacher Training Workshop which will be held in Happy Camp, May 21-22, 2005. The funding will come from the ANA Language Program.
Robert Goodwin moved and Alvis Johnson seconded to approve Contract 05-C-047. 8 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 pupitihara.
4) Erin Hillman
Erin was present to request approval of three items. The first is MOA CA 05-C19 with IHS to fund Native Americans that request assistance with Water and Wastewater facilities in the area. During Fiscal Year 2005 approximately 10 homes will qualify for these services. The individual must apply and qualify to receive the services.
Leaf Hillman moved and Leeon Hillman seconded to approve the MOA with IHS number CA 05-B19. 8 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 pupitihara.
She also requested out of state travel for the HRSA conference that will be held in Washington, DC, June 21-24, 2005. It was recommended by Wes that Erin, Larry, and one Council Member attend. Larry will be presenting his travel request and she is requesting approval for herself and one Council Member. She recommends that travel arrangements be done right away as the hotel the conference is scheduled at is already full. They could approve all three at the same time. It is agreed that Alvis Johnson will attend, he will go early for other appointments.
Robert Goodwin moved and Florrine Super seconded to approve out of state travel to Washington, DC, June 21-24, 2005 for Erin Hillman, Larry Jordan, and one Council Member. 7 haa, 0 puuhara, 1 pupitihara (Leeon Hillman).
5) Cecilia Arwood
Cecilia is requesting assistance with travel for 10-12 dancers and 4-5 chaperones to do a demonstration dance at the Coquille Tribe’s 9th Annual Cultural Preservation Conference. They requested that the dancers come up when they saw them dance at the Basketweaver’s Gathering in Happy Camp. They are requesting $250 for assistance and have also requested assistance from the TERO Commission.
Robert Goodwin moved and Leeon Hillman seconded to approve $250 from discretionary for assistance. 8 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 pupitihara.
6) Dwayne Myers
Anna spoke for Dwayne as he was not present. They wanted to know if the Council can assist with purchasing equipment for Little League as the equipment that they have is too small and worn out. She can get prices together and they can review it at the Wednesday meeting.
7) Old Business
Leeon states they tried to have a KCDC Planning Meeting but there were not very many Council Members there. They have scheduled another meeting for May 23, 2005 at 3:30 PM in Happy Camp and would like as many Council Members and KCDC Board Members there at the meeting.
8) Lessie Aubrey
Written report was included for review. Lessie states that she does not have any action items.
Florence Conrad moved and Florrine Super seconded to approve Lessie’s report. 8 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 pupitihara.
9) Vickie Walden
Written report included, not present, on travel.
Florrine Super moved and Robert Goodwin seconded to approve Vickie’s report. 8 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 pupitihara.
10) David Eisenberg
Written report included, not present.
Erin distributed Contract 05-C-048 with Raley’s Pharmacy to provide services in the absence of the Pharmacist. It will be approved through April 30, 2006 but will only be used when Mike is away. They looked for other coverage but the locums firm is booked and the individual that provided the services last year has a scheduling conflict.
Leaf Hillman moved and Leeon Hillman seconded to approve Contract 05-C-048 with Raley’s Pharmacy through April 30, 2006. 8 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 pupitihara.
David also had five policies included for their review and approval which were 02-002-003 Do Not Resuscitate, 002-003-007 Security, 05-003-017 Blood Borne Pathogen Clean Up, 05-003-005 Blood Borne Pathogen, and 007-009-040 Medical Triage. They were all approved by ACQI.
Florrine Super moved and Robert Goodwin seconded to approve the policies as presented. 8 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 pupitihara.
Leeon Hillman moved and Roy Arwood seconded to approve David’s report. 8 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 pupitihara.
11) Joe Snapp
Joe was present to review his written report. He states the Domestic Violence Program passed their re-evaluation. He has heard from the County Drug and Alcohol Program and they are going to talk to the State and then hand the program back over to the Tribe.
He would like to request approval to use the CalWorks dollars toward the Therapeutic Garden project at the Ranch. It will be in-kind toward the $40,000 grant application that goes in for next year’s budget and would be funded around December 2005. Robert states he would like to go into closed session to discuss this further. They can obligate the funding toward program expenses or salary expenses to make sure it is spent by June 30, 2005, they could use other funding toward this project or wait for the grant funding to work with E. Quest.
Consensus: For Joe to work with Larry to see where this fits into the entire Social Service Program and ensure that there are “safety nets” in place for this pilot project if it needs adjustments at the end of the pilot project term. Once they work out these details and have more specific information, they can bring it back to the Council in the Tribal Contract format for consideration.
Leaf Hillman moved and Leeon Hillman seconded to approve Joe’s report. 8 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 pupitihara.
12) Patti White
Written report included, not present, on travel.
Florence Conrad moved and Robert Goodwin seconded to approve Patti’s report. 8 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 pupitihara.
13) Dr. Steven Burns
Dr. Burns states that he would like to have Larry Jordan present medical issues in the future, he will attend the meetings but will not formally report to them each month.
14) Larry Jordan
Larry was present to review his written report. He states his first month has been very busy. Wes was in the office with him last week bringing him up to speed in several areas of the Health Program. It was very worthwhile and he feels he has some insight to go forward with.
He announced that the Health Program would like to do a Health Fair at the Tribal Reunion. They would like to rent their own tent to cover the Health booths to provide information in health wellness, prevention, and education. They will use diabetes funding for their expenses.
He requested approval of a position description for a Pharmacy Billing Clerk. Wes, himself, Pharmacy staff, and Laura have spoke about this to get up to speed in billing for the Pharmacy. They have been unable to fill the Pharmacy Technician position so they would fill this one instead to get the billing going at a better rate. Laura also plans to speak to Soaring Eagle when they come next week to possibly get the back billing at the Pharmacy up to date similar to what they are doing with the medical/dental billing. She can bring the quote to them on Wednesday. The salary scale can be Depends on Experience so they can see what kind of applications they receive.
Robert Goodwin moved and Leeon Hillman seconded to approve the Pharmacy Billing Clerk position description. 8 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 pupitihara.
The Third Party Revenue report was included and they are still on target for 1.5 Million in Fiscal Year 2005. Soaring Eagle will be on site next week to work on getting the backlog taken care of and do training with the staff.
The Pharmacy is filling an average of 113 prescriptions per day and has received their Medi-Cal provider number. They now have an electronic submission number for future Medi-Cal prescriptions. They are working out the back billing issues and getting them caught up.
The Pharmacy has requested approval of a revised mailing policy that is the same as the Potowat Pharmacy in Arcata. The proposed policy reads:
“All charges for postage and co-pays will be pre-paid by the Member before shipping. Postage will be charged will be the actual postage charged by the post office, including certified and/or signature required fees. All packages will be sent via certified and/or signature required for tracking purposes.”
This is in response to the rising costs of postage and the number of prescriptions being mailed out of the area. In April they spent $248.20 in postage, $80.19 was for Elders. The Council’s goal would be to not charge Elders these fees and there are also logistical/timing issues that go along with the pre-paid concept. Council states that if this is something they shouldn’t be doing then they shouldn’t do it and find out for sure. The number of Tribal Members outside of the service area seeing the providers and receiving prescriptions keeps rising and there may come a time that they cannot do it because they cannot afford it. They will discuss this further on Wednesday. Larry can also look into the legal issues before the meeting as well.
He states there is $10,057 remaining in their Third Party Health Assistance line item as of May 3, 2005.
He requested out of state travel for June 2-3, 2005 to Las Vegas, Nevada for JCAHO training and June 21-24, 2005 to Washington, DC for HRSA Training. They already approved his travel to Washington, DC. Lessie recommended he attend the JCAHO training in Las Vegas.
Robert Goodwin moved and Alvis Johnson seconded to approve out of state travel for Larry Jordan to Las Vegas, Nevada, June 2-3, 2005 for JCAHO training. 8 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 pupitihara.
He would like approval to serve on a CRIHB Ad Hoc Committee to develop a new fee schedule for CRIHB, this information was forwarded to him by Roy Arwood. Michael Weahkee will be coming to the Health Board Meeting on June 9, 2005 and provide them some information regarding what CRIHB has to offer.
Consensus: To allow Larry to serve on the CRIHB Ad Hoc Committee.
The Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) Third Annual Region IX Tribal Consultation Session is scheduled for May 23-24, 2005 in Valley Center, California. He recommends that he and at least one Tribal Council Member attend. Roy is willing to attend with him.
He also presented one recommendation to change the CHS Levels of Care. Currently if a Tribal Member has a colonoscopy it is considered diagnostics but if they find polyps it becomes surgery and is not covered. They would like to approve moving this expense to Level II so that it can be covered by CHS. The procedure is costly but it is unreasonable to cover the procedure but not cover the removal of the polyps if they are found. They would like this approval retroactive to January 1, 2005. Laura points out that all of the health dollars have to cover the health expenses overall and it is tight at this time, she does not feel it would be a prudent move to approve any additional expenses at this time until they have the billing situation under control. They can make a final decision at the meeting on Wednesday and then they can have additional information regarding how many have the procedure that will need the polyp procedure as well. Anna states it has only been one or two that didn’t have any insurance.
Leaf Hillman moved and Leeon Hillman seconded to approve Larry’s report. 8 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 pupitihara.
15) Sara Spence
The automotive shop included procurement to purchase a used shop truck. Laura states it could be coded to Ishpook Leasing and leased to Indirect or purchased from Indirect as it is less than $5,000.
Roy Arwood moved and Leaf Hillman seconded to purchase a used shop truck from Michael Hanson in the amount of $4,900. 7 haa, 1 puuhara (Robert Goodwin), 0 pupitihara.
16) Florrine Super
She reported on the Building the Bridge for Change training that was held this week, she states it went very well and she brought with her the ideas that the youth had about what they want to see. She states she will email the list out to the Council. The kids did skits about the issues they face and how they feel about what happens around them such as hypocrites and alcohol abuse and what they see from adults/parents around them and it was funny but scary to see how much the kids know at their young ages. She states it was very powerful to hear from these kids what they face in their lives and how they feel when you think you know but don’t really. There is one more training in the series and the Recovery Foundation will forward the information on with the final report.
What the youth want to see: 1) teen support groups, 2) AA/NA for youth, 3) summer sports (waterslides), 4) after school sports, 5) volunteer programs to help elders, 6) more jobs for youth, 7) more adults involved in youth activities, 8) more workshops, 9) more cultural activities, 10) alcohol free activities, 11) more activities for kids and parents, 12) basketball hoops with lights, 13) more youth tournaments, and 14) youth sports facilities.
Closed session from 8:55 PM to 10:40 PM
Roy Arwood moved and Leaf Hillman seconded to approve a loan in the amount of $3,000 at 5% interest to be repaid $75 per pay period. 8 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 pupitihara.
Leaf Hillman moved and Roy Arwood seconded to uphold the denial and pay $893.91 for Case #141. 8 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 pupitihara.
Robert Goodwin moved and Leaf Hillman seconded to uphold the denial and pay $79.95 for Case #142. 8 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 pupitihara. They would like an explanation letter to be sent to this Tribal Member informing them of the policies and procedures. Anna will work with Leaf on the letter.
Robert Grant excused himself at 9:15 PM.
Consensus: To table the loan request to the Wednesday meeting.
Leaf Hillman moved and Roy Arwood seconded to approve the addition of a second Grant Writer and Resource Developer at two days per week to the Indirect Cost Pool and revision to Grant Writer and Resource Developer position description. 7 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 pupitihara.
Directive: To refer the Tribal Member back to CHS to request coverage of medical bills..
Leeon Hillman moved and Robert Goodwin seconded to approve out of state travel for William Tripp to Boise, Idaho, June 6-10, 2005 for fire training. 7 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 pupitihara.
Directive: To add the Pharmacist to the Health Board Agendas and have him report each month.
Directive: For Florrine to come down on a regular basis and meet with Gerry to update the website. She can be paid stipends for those days.
Directive: To purchase a spare laptop that is in the IT Office in case the Council/key staff need to check it out. They also need to know the valuation of Fred Nahwooksy’s laptop.
Leaf Hillman moved and Florrine Super seconded to donate $75 toward the Fishing Derby. 6 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 pupitihara. Roy Arwood not present for voting.
Consensus: This year dance expenses will again be approved by a signature of an officer of the Council (Chairman, Vice-Chairman, Secretary, or Treasurer) if funding is available in the State Indian Health Budget and verified by Erin Hillman.
Consensus: The Wednesday meeting will be changed to Thursday, May 19, 2005.
Next Meeting Date: June 9, 2005 at 5 PM in Happy Camp.
Meeting adjourned at 10:41 PM.
Yootva,
________________________
Arch Super, Chairman
Recording Secretary, Sara Spence