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Home My WebLink AboutMINUTES - 08011995 - SD7 TO: BOARD OF SUPERVISORS FROM: Mark Finucane, Health Services Director , .1< Contra d` mss• Costa DATE: August 1, 1995 w ,v County SUBJECT: LETTER TO THE SECRETARY OF VETERANS AFFAIRS PROPOSING THE ESTABLISHMENT OF AN AGREEMENT TO SERVE AREA VETERANS THROUGH THE COUNTY'S HEALTH CARE SYSTEM SPECIFIC REQUEST(S)OR RECOMMENDATION(S)&BACKGROUND AND JUSTIFICATION RECOMMENDATION: AUTHORIZE the members of the Board of Supervisors to sign a letter to the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, Department of Veterans Affairs, proposing to explore the possible establishment a joint venture which would allow Bay Area veterans to be served by the County's health care system. BACKGROUND: Congress recently announced plans to cancel funding for a new Veterans Hospital at Travis Air Force Base near Fairfield, California. The planned cuts threaten to disrupt the availability of vitally needed health care services, in particular hospitalization, to thousands of Northern California veterans. Because the County operates a comprehensive and integrated health care system and has significant experience in serving the health care needs of special populations, and because the County has begun construction of a new inpatient facility due for completion in 1997, there exists a unique opportunity for the Department of Veterans Affairs and the County to work in partnership to enhance the availability and accessibility of essential health care services to Bay Area veterans. FISCAL IMPACT: None. CONTINUED ON ATTACHMENT: YES SIGNATURE: 1h 4-Z r RECOMMENDATION OF COUNTY ADMINISTRATOR RECOMMENDATION OF BOARD COMMITTEE APPROVE _OTHER SIGNATURES): ACTION OF BOARD ON August 1, 1995 APPROVED AS RECOMMENDED X OTHER VOTE OF SUPERVISORS I HEREBY CERTIFY THAT THIS IS A TRUE X UNANIMOUS (ABSENT ---- ) AND CORRECT COPY OF AN ACTION TAKEN AYES: NOES: AND ENTERED ON THE MINUTES OF THE BOARD ABSENT: ABSTAIN: OF SUPERVISORS ON THE DATE SHOWN. Contact Person: Mark Finucane, 370-5007 CC: Health Services Administration ATTESTED August 1 1995 County Administrator PHIL BATCHELOR,CLERK OF THE BOARD OF SUPERVP7D COUNTY AD RAT R P AUG- 2-95 WED 17;07 OFFICE OE THE DIRECTOR FAX NO. 510 370 5099 P. 02 The Board of SupervisorsPhil Batchelor Contra/ Clerk of the Board and County Administration BuildingGOSfi� County Administrator 651 Pine Street, Room 106 (610)W-2371 Martinet,California 94553-1293 County Jim Rogers,1st District Jeff Smith.2nd District Gayle Bishop,3rd Distrlet Mark DeSaulnfor,4th District Tom Torlakson,6th District August 1, 1995 The Honorable Jesse Brown Secretary of Veterans Affairs Department of Veterans Affairs 8O1 Vermont Ave.., N.W. Washington, D.C. 20320 Dear Secretary Brown: We are writing to express our concern about the proposed cancellation of funding for a new Veterans Hospital at Travis Air Force Base near Fairfield, California. Unless adequate protections can be s%6ftly implemented, the proposed cuts threaten. to disrupt the availability of vitally needed health care services to thousands of Bay Area veterans. In light of this emerging situation, we are interested in exploring with the Department of Veterans Affairs the. possibility of establishing a joint venture to help meet the medical needs of area veterans. As background,three.years ago Contra Costa County proposed to lease land at the closing Martinez VA Medical Center site in order to build a new county hospital. In exchange, the County was prepared to provide -- as determined by the VA's needs -- a limited number of inpatient beds and a host of ancillary services to support . the operation of the. VA's outpatient clinic. While the discussions which followed were cooperative and productive., the VA ultimately concluded that such an agreement was not consistent with impending plans and would not be in the best interest of the Department. Since that time,the County has decided to move forward with construction of a 144-bed inpatient facility to replace the CountYs outmoded Merrithew Memorial Hospital. The new hospital, which will be located on its present site in the city of Martinez, is scheduled for completion in 1997. The Contra Costa County Health Services Department is a.prevention-oriented,primary care based health system comprised of specialized divisions working together to serve the health needs of County residents- The system provides primary medical care and hospitalization,mental health,substance abuse,public health,environmental health, home health, emergency medical,and many other vital health care services. It is important to note that the Health Services Department has also developed a special emphasis in geriatrics and offers a comprehensive program aimed at bridging the disciplines of medicine and psychiatry in the assessment and treatment of the elderly. Contra Costa's health system also includes a federally-qualified health maintenance organization, called the Contra Costa Health Plan (CCHP),which for more than two decades has been providing services in a managed care setting. In addition, through a long affiliation with the University of California at Davis, the County operates a highly regarded family practice residency program. This rigorous training program includes a mandatory rotation in geriatrics. During a visit to Contra Costa County in 1993,Vice President Al Gore praised AUG- 2-95 WED 17;07 OFFICE OE THE DIRECTOR FAX NO, 510 370 5099 P, 03 Honorable Jesse Brown August 1, 1995 Page. 2 the County's health care system as a comprehensive and inclusive "model" for managed care systems. Given the uncertain future of the planned hospital at Travis, we are interested in discussing with you the possibility of making health care services available to the region's veterans through the County's health system. Under such an arrangement,veterans could be enrolled in CCHP,with hospital services provided at.the C.ounty's Merrithew Memorial Hospital. Pending a fitzal decision on the Travis project, arrangements could be made on an interim basis initially and reevaluated for longer-term potential as appropriate. As the governing body of this County,we can certainly appreciate the hard choices the federal government facies in working to fulfill its obligations to veterans within strict budgetary limitations. Given the current circumstances,we believethere exists a rare opportunity for the Department of Veterans Affairs and the County to work together to enhance the availability and accessibility of health care services for Northern California veterans. On a final note,we would point out that the Department of Health and Human Services'Assistant Secretary of. Health, Philip R. Lee, M,D., and the VA's Undersecretary for Health, Kennetb Kizer, M.D., are both very familiar with the County`s system and experience and should be able to provide additional comments regarding our capacity to handle the special needs of veterans. Your consideration of this request is appreciated. We will be in touch with your office soon regarding the possibility of scheduling a meeting to discuss further potential solutions to this difficult situation and to share a more detailed outline of our proposal. Stnccr4ly, Ali Gayle Sishop, Chair Jir4 Rogers Jeff m, Board of Supervisors 141 District Sup xvisor 2nd istrict Supervisor 3rd District Super\isor law Mark DeSaulnicr Tom Torlakson 4th District Supervisor 5th District Supervisor cc, Phil Batchelor, County Administrator Mark Finucane, Health Ser,icc:s Director Congressman George Miller Senator Dianne. )Feinstein Kenneth Kizer, M.D., Undersecretary for Health, Department of Veterans' Affairs Philip R. Lee, M.D., Assistant Secretary of Health, Department of Health and Human Services