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Approve the Board of Supervisors response to the 2023/2024 Civil Grand Jury Report of June 21, 2024, entitled - “Public Health Laboratory Systems Review.”
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Published Notice Required? Yes ____ No __X__
Public Hearing Required? Yes ____ No __X__
DEPARTMENTAL RECOMMENDATION:
It is recommended that the Board of Supervisors approve the Board of Supervisors response to the 2023/2024 Civil Grand Jury Report of June 21, 2024, entitled - “Public Health Laboratory Systems Review.”
SUMMARY/DISCUSSION:
On June 21, 2024, the Solano County Civil Grand Jury issued a report entitled “Public Health Laboratory System Review.” The FY2023/24 report is a follow-up from a report the Civil Grand Jury conducted in FY2012/13 when they elected to review the Health and Social Services Laboratory systems. The FY2012/13 Civil Grand Jury report highlighted some problems in the Public Health Laboratory, including inadequacies in the billing system and personnel shortages. Therefore, a follow-up investigation in FY2023/24 was deemed appropriate.
As part of their statement of facts, the Civil Grand Jury reported that the Public Health Laboratory (PHL), located at 2201 Courage Drive in Fairfield, is a regional laboratory facility, was established through an Exercise of Power Agreement (JEPA), and performs several routine public health laboratory tests for the Counties of Napa, Solano, Yolo, Marin, and Mendocino. (Note: Mendocino subsequently withdrew from the JEPA in 2024 due to budget constraints and a low volume of required tests.) The PHL is currently fully staffed, with 15 full-time personnel and two part-time employees, based on need and volume of testing.
The Civil Grand Jury report found the PHL uses two software systems, one for billing and one for lab management. The report indicates that both systems are currently not up to date on security requirement, a finding that was also determined to be the case in FY2012/13. PHL staff submitted a request to the County Department of Information Technology (DOIT) to acquire a new accounting system; however, the date for acquisition has yet to be determined.
The Civil Grand Jury report indicates the PHL has an annual operating budget of approximately $2 million dollars and averages approximately 30,000 tests per year. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the PHL tested more than 100,000 tests annually, and the budget exceeded $3 million dollars (which was increased temporarily and offset by one-time monies). The County Auditor-Controller reviews the PHL budget, and the last two audits of the facility found no discrepancies.
The Civil Grand Jury report found that lab staff, during the COVID-19 pandemic, stated that public information from agencies including the Centers for Disease Control, National Institute for Health and World Health Organization published conflicting, confusing and misleading information. The report suggests that PLH, in coordination with Solano County, Health and Social Services, Public Health, work to re-establish public trust within the community regarding the accuracy of health information and their [the PHL’s] contribution to public health. Furthermore, the report states that since the release of the FY2012/13 Civil Grand Jury report, the PHL has made several improvements, including being fully staffed, more effective billing practices and overall cleanliness of the facility.
The Civil Grand Jury report has two (2) findings and two (2) corresponding recommendations. The report identified the Director of Health and Social Services, Public Health Director, Director of Information Technology, and the Solano County Board of Supervisors as responding agencies. The Board of Supervisors’ proposed response is set forth in Attachment A - Response to the Grand Jury Report of June 21, 2024: Public Health Laboratory Systems Review. Copies of Grand Jury reports are available upon request from the Clerk of the Board or can be viewed on the Civil Grand Jury section of the Solano County Superior Court website.
FINANCIAL IMPACT:
The cost of preparing this report is nominal and is included in the County Administrator’s FY2024/25 Working Budget.
ALTERNATIVES:
The Board may choose to disagree with the recommended responses and direct staff to prepare a different or more elaborate response to the Civil Grand Jury.
OTHER AGENCY INVOLVEMENT:
There is no other agency involvement.
CAO RECOMMENDATION:
APPROVE DEPARTMENTAL RECOMMENDATION