NORWICH – Though just February, the Chenango County Mental Hygiene Services Department currently faces a budget deficit of $246,000, or about 5 percent of its total 2008 budget.
Department Director Mary Ann Spryn told county lawmakers Tuesday that while the amount appeared to be “fairly serious,” it could, for the most part, be recovered from the New York State Department of Health.
“We are very optimistic that they will assist us,” she said, while pointing out that Medicaid rule changes contributed to the situation.
“The state has a faulty model,” she said.
Spryn anticipates that all but approximately $45,000 of the amount will be reimbursed within the next two weeks. The remaining deficit is the result of Medicaid take-backs from 2004 and 2005 that the New York State Office of Alcoholism & Substance Abuse Services considered overpayments based on the county’s revenues, she said.
“We generated more revenues than we had budgeted,” said Spryn, who told the committee she had become aware of the discrepancy in November.
Committee Chairman Jeffrey B. Blanchard, R-Pitcher, admonished the department director for not making the deficit known during the budgeting season last fall. “You should have noticed this in June,” he said.
“Where will we pull $45,000? Not from the 2008 budget. It’s already finished. What are you changing to not have a deficit again this year?” he asked.
Spryn said she had thought the department would be able to “turn it around” in the fourth quarter. She pointed to a total of six experienced employees who left their jobs last year and a group of other employees who were out on extensive sick leave. The vacancies resulted in fewer cases. There are currently four vacancies in the department.
“It looks very bad, but we are doing everything we can to make sure it doesn’t happen again. Our projections have always been on top of revenues in the past. This has never happened before,” she said.
The deficit is comprised of approximately $50,600 in case management, $195,500 in mental health and $45,400 in alcohol and drug services.
“This is an anomaly. We are monitoring units of service and case loads. If they are down, we’ll see if we need the number (of employees),” said Spryn.
The deficit has put “quite a few bills” on hold in the department, said Tom Crounse, administrative service officer.
Blanchard asked Spryn to give a report back to the committee before the first quarter ended, and to do so for every quarter of the year. “The sooner we can know (about decreases), the better we are going to react to them.”
“You were caught as surprised with this as we were, and that’s what’s got to change,” Blanchard said.
Town of Smyrna Supervisor James J. Bays asked Spryn how Governor Eliot Spitzer’s budget proposal would affect mental hygiene services in the county. Spryn said the proposal “looks favorable” for the mental health programs, particularly for local services.