Supervisors discuss reasons for rising costs

The Winnebago County Supervisors want to keep the public informed about why costs are going up in several areas of their budget. The Supervisors held a series of three public meetings last week in Forest City and Thompson, on the topics of public health, mental health, rural recycling, and courthouse repairs.

Supervisor Bill Jensvold says extra costs are being passed down to the county from the state on public and mental health. “They make rules all the time that you’ve got to do this and that, but they don’t give you any money to do it,” said Jensvold.

Julie Sorenson, Executive Director of Winnebago County Public Health, spoke during a meeting last Tuesday morning at the courthouse in Forest City. She says she has to fight for some clients every month to get reimbursement through the Managed Care Organizations (MCOs) that took over Iowa’s Medicaid program in 2016. She says it’s a problem throughout the state. Services provided by Winnebago County Public Health include skilled nursing, home health aides, homemaking, health screenings and immunizations.

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