Kane County votes to transfer health services to private sector

With much yelling and even some boos, the Kane County Board voted Tuesday to shift residents to the private sector for Medicaid services, help with pregnancies and health care for foster children by the end of this year.

The 18-8 vote terminates access to those services through the county health department after officials lost all trust in the state's ability to pay its bills on time and reimburse the county for such services.

At least 62 health department employees will receive a layoff notice along with that change.

The health department's lobbyist, Raucci & Sullivan Strategies will also be fired as part of the deal. The firm lobbies for Kane County, Metra and the Grand Victoria Casino, among others.

Local residents and some of the doctors and case managers who care for them begged the county board for an hour Tuesday not to shift its services. Case managers said local private clinics are notorious for long waiting times that send people to emergency rooms for even basic prenatal care when they can't be seen on a timely basis. But CEOs from the Visiting Nurse Association of the Fox Valley, the Greater Elgin Family Care Center and Aunt Martha's Health Center all swore publicly, once again, that they can shoulder the load of some 6,000 new clients in the next 90 days.

Greater Elgin Family Care Center CEO Bob Tanner and the other CEOs said long wait times at their facilities are a myth.

"That would be a shock to me," Tanner said. Patients with an appointment are in and out of the door in 50 minutes. Patients without an appointment "wait a little longer," he explained. "I want to assure you we have the capacity, we have the wherewithal within the organization to provide the services."

With those reassurances in place, the yelling began. Weeks of explanation about the need for the transition received what amounted to a cross examination by county board member Bonnie Kunkel. Kunkel began by asking how much money the state owes the health department as of Tuesday.

Health Department Executive Director Paul Kuehnert then detailed how what once was $1.5 million in late payments from the state shrank within the last month.

"Over the past 30 days Kane County has very much been on the radar screen of the state and the state comptroller," Kuehnert said. "So have some of the payments come more quickly than projected? Yes, I think they have."

Kuehnert said the result is the state is still $500,000 behind, despite the recent attempts to make good on old debt. Kunkel then grilled Kuehnert on his efforts to get the remaining $500,000 paid through the state's expedited payment process. Kuehnert said he did not apply because he believes the county does not qualify for such expedited payments.

That statement brought a chorus of boos from the audience.

The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees has repeatedly said the county need only apply for expedited payments and more of the old debt would be paid.

"So you're saying that you personally made a decision not to apply for expedited payments even though we were able to get expedited payments without your application?" Kunkel asked. "And that all of us county board members here are supposed to rely upon a presumption that we cannot get expedited payments even though we didn't even make application?"

County Board Chairman Karen McConnaughay then stepped in before Kuehnert could answer and received more boos from the audience for doing so. She explained the county does not qualify for such payments because the health department can't apply as a stand-alone agency. The county as a whole doesn't qualify.

After the vote, McConnaughay said all the talk of expedited payments is just a distraction from the main issue of the state no longer being a suitable partner for the county with which to provide such health services.

AFSCME spokeswoman Carla Williams said the union remains unsatisfied with the county's explanation for the layoffs and downsizing. It will now seek to prove that the whole plan was manufactured to break up the union in the health department.