Document text
County Mental Health manager loses his job By JONEL ALECCIA The manager of the Jackson County Mental Health Department has lost his job as administrators struggle to curb a budget shortfall without further cuts to direct-service staff. Ron Gardner, 57, will leave the agency Aug. 10, county health director Hank Collins said Friday. The move, which will save $100,000 a year in salary and benefits, came after department employees called for reductions in administration rather than frontline workers. "My mental health team said if we made additional cuts, we needed to cut from management," Collins said. "So we did." Gardner's dismissal is no reflection on his performance or abilities, Collins added. "I'm very grateful for all that he's done, but it's tough when you have money problems," he said. In April, nearly a dozen skills trainers, health assistants and counselors were laid off as the agency struggled with an estimated $1.1 million shortfall in the $9.6 million Mental Health Department budget. The budget is part of the estimated $40 million county Health and Human Services spending plan. The remaining deficit was about $310,000 as of June 30, Collins said. But he called the budget "a moving target" with firm figures difficult to predict because of variable costs for acute psychiatric hospital care and fluctuating enrollment in the Oregon Health Plan. The county is responsible for about $1 million in charges for psychiatric care in the 2 North unit at Rogue Valley Medical Center. A change in the way costs are distributed among participating counties left Jackson County with a higher bill than ever before, Collins has said. Additionally, Oregon Health Plan repayment rates are expected to drop 1.2 percent this fall, Collins said. "On the one hand, if hospital usage goes down, we save money; on the other hand, if enrollment in the Oregon Health Plan goes down, we lose money," Collins said. Pending negotiations with the county labor union also could affect further layoffs, Collins said. The department served some 5,300 local clients in fiscal year 2000, including nearly 1,700 children. It is also responsible for an estimated 21,000 Oregon Health Plan members. Gardner, who has held his post since 1999, was not available for comment. His telephone voice message said he would work part time until Aug. 10. Gardner's duties will be distributed among other department managers, Collins said. Fran Curtis, an outpatient program manager, said Gardner was responsible for ensuring the department complied with state and federal funding regulations, among myriad other duties. "I'm really hoping that the rest of us in management can try to absorb the most crucial parts of his job," Curtis said. Services to clients shouldn't be affected, she added. But a Medford man who receives treatment for bipolar disorder said he was worried about possible departmental changes. "Mental health is like a dot-com, it's falling and falling," said Joel Hergert, 28, who's also a member of the local mental health advisory board. "Where's the bottom?" Announced Thursday, Gardner's departure saddened most workers, Curtis said. "He's a big-hearted, generous man and, in a sense, he's really a sacrifice so that the rest of us can keep the show going," Curtis said. Reach reporter JoNel Aleccia at 776-4465, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.