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An action that will save the Lycoming-Clinton Joinder $18,000 a year was approved by their board at this month's meeting.
The Joinder is self-insured for unemployment. Because they have registered as a nonprofit, they were required to provide a surety bond, which, according to Keith Wagner, executive director, was $18,000 the last time they paid it.
"In talking with our solicitor, we realized that another option is to be listed as a political subdivision, which the Joinder also is. If we do that, we don't have to have the bond," Wagner said.
"That's $18,000 more for services," commented Lycoming County Commissioner Rick Mirabito, president of the board.
In anticipation of Joinder services moving from their current location at the Sharwell building to the county-owned Third Street Plaza, the board approved a contract with Carol Simpkins for document scanning and electronic document creation at a rate of $15.10 per hour, not to exceed $12,000.
The Joinder has saved documents in paper form and with their planned move were looking to downsize.
"Doing this allows us to not have to store all of that paperwork somewhere," Wagner said.
Simpkins was contracted to do the work through the end of the fiscal year, but Wagner said that it's anticipated that she will be done by February. The move to Third Street Plaza will be completed by Aug.1, 2024.
In other actions, the board approved the following action items relating to early intervention services for children birth to three years of age: a renewal agreement for occupational therapy with Kimberly Heffner at $34.70 per quarter hour; a new agreement for occupational therapy with Emily Boyles at $34.70 per quarter hour; and a new agreement for vision teaming services with Mary Bauman at $27.31 per quarter hour.
Wagner noted that Bauman had been recruited for a child who is both deaf and blind. Bauman will coordinate the team which is providing various services to the child and family.
She will also be working with other vision-impaired children, Wagner said.
When asked how children are identified at that young age as having visual or hearing impairments, Wagner said that most of their referrals come from pediatricians.
"The other thing the early intervention staff themselves do is a lot of community events. They go out and do spot assessments. They go to the First Fridays and church events and so many things," Wagner explained.
"A lot of times parents aren't sure -- does my child have a delay or not? It's a scary time for parents so they try to lighten some of that for them and help them understand that it doesn't have to be a permanent thing. A lot of the children get the service in that birth to three (age group) and that delay gets corrected and then then they go on with their life," he said.
The next meeting of the Joinder Board will be at 9:30 a.m. Nov. 15 at 8 N. Grove St., Lock Haven.