Health district approves budget
II i I ii I iii U
h
I I I i i h i I I i I h 'II
Bessie Wetzell Newspaper Library
University o f Oregon
Eugene. OR 97403
VOL. 131
N O . 18 10 Pages
Wednesday, May 2, 2012
District anticipates loss fo r next year
By April Sykes
The Morrow Coun
ty Health District Board
voted Monday to accept a
proposed 2012-13 budget,
which shows an estimated
loss of $66,047 for the next
Morrow County, Heppner, Oregon
‘Work on Wellness’
meeting held
The C om m unity
Health Improvement Part
nership (CHIP) of Morrow
County hosted “Work on
Wellness” sessions with
local businesses in Heppner
and Boardman on April 24-
25 to examine the health
needs identified for Mor
row County, opportunities
for businesses to affect the
health of the community,
and options for worksites
interested in developing
wellness programs to en
courage healthy employ
ees and reduce health care
costs.
A ndrea Fletcher
opened the session with a
presentation o f informa
tion about the health needs
o f Morrow County, how
the social and physical
environment people live,
work and play in (livability
o f a community) affects
well-being, and how a com
munity working together
can advance the quality of
life for individuals through
thoughtfully planned and
coordinated programs and
services coupled with a sup
portive environment.
Jan Noland, City-
county Insurance Services,
presented a summary of
what influences health care
insurance premium costs,
and how m odifying the
lifestyle factors that con
tribute to the development
o f chronic disease (over-
Jan Noland of Citycounty Insurance Services addresses at
tendees at a Work on Wellness session recently. -Contributed
photo
weight/obesity, tobacco use
and physical activity) can
address the future decline of
health status for individuals
and decrease health related
costs.
Dawn R o b b in s,
Oregon Health Authority
Wellness@Work Program,
navigated h ttp s://d w p l.
dhs.oregon.gov/W ellnes-
sAtWork, a web-based tool
with free resources avail
able to help businesses both
large and small gauge their
health environment, learn
about assessing employee
interests, needs and health
risks, and generate ideas for
workplace activities or pro
grams to support employee
wellness.
T ric ia R o llin s ,
Bank of Eastern Oregon;
Marcia Kemp, United States
Forrest Service, Heppner
Ranger District; Roz Pe-
dro, Conagra Foods Lamb
Weston; and Karen Kegler,
Boardman Foods, Inc. de
scribed their organizations’
philosophies about healthy
employees, incentives, pro
grams and physical envi
ronments that prompted
them to institute worksite
wellness initiatives.
Work on Wellness
was funded by the North
west Health Foundation
and supported by CHIP, Co
lumbia River Community
Health Services, Morrow
County Public Health De
partment and Commission
on Children and Families,
Com m unity Counseling
Solutions, Morrow County
Health District, Heppner
and Boardman chambers of
commerce. Dale Bates and
CenturyLink. See http://
www.ohsu.edu/M CCHIP
for more information.
Ballot drop locations
Ballots are due by
May 15 at 8 p.m. Complet
ed ballots may be mailed
or dropped off at any of
the follow ing locations
provided by the Morrow
County Clerk:
Heppner: Court
house parking lot. Open
24 hours, April 27 until 8
p.m. May 15. Or, the Mor
row County Clerk’s Office,
Room 102 inside the court
house. Open 8 a.m. to noon
and 1-5 p.m., M-F and Elec
tion Day (May 15) from 7
a.m. until 8 p.m.
Lexington: 365
West Hwy 74 (Public Works
Parking lot). Turn off Hwy.
74 onto Tom Street and
left into the public works
parking lot. Open 24 hours,
April 27 until 8 p.m. May
15 .
lone: Spring St.
Twenty-four-hour ballot drop sites like this one at the Mor
row County Courthouse allow easy access to Morrow County
voters. -Photo by Andrea Di Salvo
(in front of the turn to 3rd
Street). Open 24 hours,
April 27 until 8 p.m. May
15.
Boardman: NW
Boardman Ave. Open 24
hours, April 27 until 8 p.m.
May 15.
Irrigon: 205 NE
3rd St. (Irrigon Annex).
Open 24 hours, April 27
until 8 p.m. May 15.
A L L N E W S A N D A D V E R T IS E M E N T D EA D LIN E:
M O N D A Y S A T 5 :0 0 P.M .
fiscal year. The loss will be
covered by the district’s
cash carryover.
Chief Financial Of
ficer Nicole Mahoney told
the board that she was very
conservative in her projec
tions, considering that in
previous years the projected
resources from operations
had been somewhat over
estimated compared to the
actual figures.
“It’s hard to pre
dict, so we tried to be a
little conservative. Obvi
ously, a lot of the numbers
are estimates,” Mahoney
stressed.
She also comment
ed that without the addi
tional five-year serial levy
voters approved earlier,
the district would not have
enough income to sustain
itself.
“ With the budget
looking the way it is, I ex
pect we will need it again,”
she commented. The dis
trict is in the fourth year of
a five-year serial levy.
The budget also
includes a five percent in
crease in service rates for
all departments, effective
July 1.
The 2012-13 bud
get shows $8,697,619 in
resources and $1,192,856 in
tax revenue for $9,890,475
in total resources, compared
to $9,956,522 in total ex
penditures for a $66,047
decrease in cash.
Last year’s 2011-
12 adopted budget included
$8,812,203 in resources
and $1,131,502 in tax rev
enue for $9,943,705 in
total resources, compared
to $9,743,647 in expendi
tures.
Mahoney said that
an 83 percent increase in
Workman’s Comp insur
ance, amounting to around
$43,000, is one big factor in
the negative bottom line.
Proposed resources
and expenditures by depart
ment are as follows:
- H o s p i -
tal-$5,l 16,232 in resources
vs $5,326,256 in expendi
tures;
-Home Health &
Hospice-$572,855 in re
sources vs $650,857 in
expenditures;
-Boardm an Am-
bulance-$269,861 in re
sources vs $298.333 in
expenditures;
-Irrig o n A m b u
la n c e ^ 17,034 in resourc
es vs $175,669 in expen
ditures;
-H ep p n er C lin -
ic-$971,990 in resources
vs. $1,006,096 in expen
ditures;
- I r r ig o n C lin -
ic-$432,825 in resources vs.
$329,296 in expenditures;
O th e r r e s o u r c
es include: other rev e
n u e ^ 130,400 (dietary &
cafeteria revenue, rental
incom e, m iscellaneous
income and reim burse
ments and contract revenue
with Willow Creek Ter
race and Columbia River
Ranch); donations and
grants-$ 167,235; interest
income-$40,500; capital
leases-$ 120,000; operating,
capital, long and short tenn
loans-$ 150,000; commu
nity service fees-$60,000;
electronic health record
reimbursements-$448,687.
Other expenditures
include: emergency medi
cal services (Lexington and
Ione)-$ 16,096; Boardman
clinic donations and commu
nity benefit grants-$50,000;
revenue reductions and
bad debt-$ 1,158,344; capi
tal purchases-$443,735;
capital lease principal re-
duction-$45,000; long and
short term debt principal
eduction-$456,840.
Budgeted expen
ditures include the fol
lowing capital purchases:
$250,000-Irrigon Clinic
expansion; $ 140,000-am
bulance and defibrillator
for Irrigon (scheduled re
placement); $44,735-two
defibrillators for Boardman
and Heppner ambulances;
$9,000-Pioneer Memorial
Clinic heating and ventilat
ing system; total-$443,735
with $75,000 to be financed
by a bank loan, $ 195,000 to
be financed by other loans,
$41,500 to be paid with
cash on hand and $ 132,235
to be paid by grants and
donated funds.
Also at the meet
ing, the board:
-learned that the
district ended up in the black
in March with a $30,219
gain for the month. The
district showed $597,821
in gross patient revenue and
$ 114,068 in revenue deduc
tions for $483,752 in net pa
tient revenue and $592,552
in total operating revenue;
$592,134 in total operating
expenses and a $29,801
non-operating gain. The
-See HEALTH DISTRICT
BUDGET/PAGE FIVE
Doherty named public
works director
Harmon leaving fo r Prineville job
By David Sykes
Chad Doherty was
named public works direc
tor for the city of Heppner
at a special city council
meeting last Wednesday
night.
The city council
met to go over applications
for the soon-to-be-vacant
city manager’s job, but it
also was announced that
current Public Works Direc
tor Brian Harmon is leaving
to take a superintendent job
in Prineville. Harmon has
worked for the city for the
past 12 years.
After learning o f
Harmon’s departure, the
The council went
council voted to promote through the applications,
Doherty from as
which were num
sistant public works
bered so the names
d irecto r to head
of applicants were
public works direc
not revealed, and
tor. Doherty, 36, has
narrowed their pos
worked for the city
sible choices down
for the past eight
to nine. O f those,
years.
the council will be
In the main Uhad
gin interviews and
b u sin e ss o f the Doherty
background checks
meeting, the coun
to further narrow
cil sifted through 30 ap their choices.
plications for the soon-to-
DeMayo has said
be-vacant city manager’s he will stay on until Au
job, currently held by Dave gust until his replacement
DeMayo, who is retiring.
is found.
EOU update meeting &
reception held in Heppner
E astern O regon
University President Bob-
Davies met with commu
nity leaders at a reception at
Rep. Greg Smith’s home in
Heppner on April 26.
Davies gave an up
date on the university’s cur
rent activities and its plans
for the future. EOU serves
students and communities
throughout Oregon with
a special focus on rural,
regional and distance learn
ing.
Programs are de
livered on campus, online
and onsite in La Grande
and at 16 regional centers
and include liberal arts,
business, education and
cooperative programs in
Representative Greg Smith (left) greets Eastern Oregon Uni
versity President Bob Davies at reception in Heppner last week.
-Photo by David Sykes
agriculture, nursing and dental hygiene.
pardon
OUR
MESS
W xwel
W e s t il l
h a v e g r ea t buys
rs &
& HARDWARE
ON PARTS
Morrow V County Grain Growers
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