County supervisors have instructed staff officials to examine ways to potentially bring down the cost of outside contracts for services, with a close look at a $1 million contract for medical care at the county jail.
Interim County Administrative Officer Ray Espinosa said the county has 433 active contracts for various consultant services such as the master plan for the River Parkway and Regional Park, finishing the general plan update, and medical care at the jail.
“There is no central database or central storage,” Espinosa said.
He suggested creating a database that would make it easier to search the contracts and keep track of the expenses.
In San Benito County, seven vendors have contracts worth more than $1 million, while another 12 have contracts worth $500,000 or more. At last week’s special meeting devoted to budget issues, the supervisors heard about one specific high-dollar contract.
“We are looking at the possibility of using our internal workforce to handle medical services at the jail,” Espinosa said.
He said there are items in the current contract Sheriff Darren Thompson said he likes and some that he doesn’t, but ultimately they would need to look at the feasibility of changing the way services are provided.
Alan Yamamoto, the deputy director of behavioral health, agreed to look into some other options for offering medical care at the jail. He said the county’s behavioral health department provides substance abuse and mental health services in the jail, with the outside vendor offering medical care. He said Hazel Hawkins Memorial Hospital had offered medical services to the jail at one point. He said he could look into the possibility of renewing that option.
He said the county could also look into a partnership with the San Benito Health Foundation, which recently acquired a mobile clinic vehicle.
“These are all general ideas that need to be researched,” Yamamoto said.
Supervisor Anthony Botelho said he was interested in making a decision before the end of the fiscal year in order to realize as much potential savings as possible in the 2013-14 year.
Espinosa said the original jail contract was signed in 2007 and was a three-year contract. It has been approved without changes the last few years.
“This fiscal year, we will have to do something,” he said, of either canceling the contract or reviewing it for renewal.
Espinosa said in his research of the county’s contracts, he found that some are out of date. He also said supervisors might want to review some contracts to ensure adequate services.
“We want to make sure they are doing what we need them to do for the community,” he said.
