The Geauga Board of Wellness voted unanimously to enter into a multi-jurisdictional agreement with the Lake County Basic Wellness District to serve as the recruiting agency for Geauga Public Wellness.
The agreement will save Geauga County residents as substantially as $600,000 a year in well being care expenses although preserving all the solutions they presently acquire from Geauga Public Wellness, according to a news release.
“This is not a takeover and it is not a merger,” Geauga Public Wellness Board Chairman Richard Piraino mentioned in a statement. “The Lake County Basic Wellness District will serve as Geauge’s recruiting agency.”
“Our agreement with Lake is the very best way for Geauga to keep handle more than the well being care solutions we offer to our residents although saving these residents important funds every year.”
The agreement enters into force on April three. With the Lake County Public Wellness District delivering staffing going forward, 17 Geauga Public Wellness staff will be laid off helpful March 31. personnel solutions, but no 1 is assured a position, according to the announcement.
“We know this is painful for our Geauga Public Wellness staff, and we are genuinely sorry for it.” “GPH is facing a price range shortfall of more than $500,000 in 2024 and we had to make a extremely challenging choice,” Piraino mentioned in a statement. “We have worked diligently to come across the very best answer and are getting into into this agreement to assure that we can continue to offer the men and women we serve in Geauga County with the solutions they require and deserve.”
All Geauga Public Wellness representatives, no matter whether GPH staff or Lake contract staff, will continue to operate on behalf of and at the path of the Geauga Board of Wellness, according to the release. The Geauge Board of Wellness, appointed by Geauge elected officials, will continue to handle GPH’s policies, applications and solutions and will continue to challenge its personal permits, keep its automobiles, workplace, web site and identity.
“Geauge residents will continue to go to the identical areas to get the identical solutions,” Piraino mentioned. “None of that is going to alter.”
For the reason that of the agreement amongst the well being districts, the combined populations of the two districts will open up the capacity to apply for bigger grants, essential to funding the well being departments, that are not readily available to Geauga or Lake alone, the release mentioned. And the efficiencies that will be accomplished provide positive aspects to the two well being departments and the residents of each counties.
Added benefits, according to the Geauga Board of Wellness, consist of:
• Gaining access to further applications such as field solutions due to enhanced access to grant funding sources
• Lowering the price of public well being solutions for residents by funding some ongoing applications by means of qualifying grants
• Sharing of specialized employees, such as in the regions of information evaluation, accreditation, neighborhood desires assessment, emergency preparedness, finance and grant writing
• Elevated coordination for emergency response and public well being emergencies.
“It is clear that with each other we can be stronger and extra fiscally accountable to the residents of Geauga County,” Piraino mentioned.