To: Board of Supervisors
From: Anna Roth, Health Services Director
Report Title: Payments for Services Provided by Project Open Hand
☒Recommendation of the County Administrator ☐ Recommendation of Board Committee
RECOMMENDATIONS:
APPROVE and AUTHORIZE the Auditor-Controller, or designee, to pay $10,000 to Project Open Hand, a non-profit corporation, for additional home-delivered meals for low-income residents of Contra Costa County living with HIV for the period September 13, 2023 through March 31, 2024, as recommended by the Health Services Director.
FISCAL IMPACT:
Approval of this payment will result in expenditures of $10,000 and is funded 100% by Ryan White Care Act-Part B.
BACKGROUND:
This contractor provides home-delivered meals throughout Contra Costa County in accordance with County’s Agreement #28-849-10 with California Department of Public Health Office of AIDS as grantee for state funds from the Ryan White Treatment and Extension Act of 2009, the Federal Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) Ryan White “Program and Fiscal Monitoring Standards of 2010” (and any modifications or renewals thereof). This contractor conducts nutritional assessments when a resident is referred for home-delivered meals services by Public Health’s Medical Care Management staff. This contractor prepares a monthly menu for each resident in alignment with their nutritional and dietary restrictions. This contractor prepares and packages meals using the nutritional assessment and delivers each home-delivered meal to the resident.
In August 2023, the County administrator approved and the Purchasing Services Manager executed Contract #72-198 with Project Open Hand, in an amount not to exceed $50,000, to provide home-delivered meals for low-income residents of Contra Costa County living with HIV for the period April 1, 2023 through March 31, 2024.
This contractor incurred costs over and above the contract limit. Staff received approval from California Department of Public Health to increase the contract to $60,000. The approval came too late to amend contract #72-198, however the contractor provided services in good faith beyond the original Contract Payment Limit.
The contractor is entitled to payment for the reasonable value of its services under the equitable relief theory of quantum meruit. That theory provides that where a contractor has been asked to provide services without a valid contract, and the contractor does so to the benefit of the County, the contractor is entitled to recover the reasonable value of those services. The contractor has provided services at the request of the County after the contract payment limit had been reached. The Department cannot pay the contractor for services rendered that exceed the contract limits. As such, the Department recommends that the Board authorize the Auditor-Controller to issue a one-time payment not to exceed $10,000 to Project Open Hand.
CONSEQUENCE OF NEGATIVE ACTION:
If this Board Order is not approved, the contractor will not be paid for services requested by County staff and provided by the contractor.