To: Board of Supervisors
From: Dr. Ori Tzvieli, Interim Health Services Director
Report Title: Payments for Services Provided by Language Line Services, Inc.
☒Recommendation of the County Administrator ☐ Recommendation of Board Committee
RECOMMENDATIONS:
APPROVE and AUTHORIZE the Auditor-Controller, or designee, to pay $116,412.19 to Language Line Services, Inc., a corporation, for additional Federal and State mandated interpretation and translation services and back-up telephonic services to the Health Care Interpreter Network for the month of April 2025, as recommended by the Interim Health Services Director.
FISCAL IMPACT:
Approval of this payment will result in a one-time expenditure of up to $116,412.19 and will be funded 100% by Hospital Enterprise Fund I.
BACKGROUND:
This Contract allows County to meet Title VI language access regulations and Limited English Proficient (LEP) patient/client needs for the County. Contractor’s services include but are not limited to, over-the-phone interpretation, testing of our in-house healthcare interpreters, acting as a back-up to our HCIN, and providing onsite interpretation and translation of written documents for the Health Services Department’s patients/clients. This Contract was entered into under and subject to the following legal authority: California Government Code §§ 31000. Health Services Personnel approved this Contract to ensure no conflicts with labor relations. Division Contract monitoring staff meet to ensure monitoring of performance measures set forth in the Contract are upheld. This Contractor has been a part of Contra Costa Health Services providing interpretation and translation services and fostering a deep understanding of the County’s organizations mission, values, and long-term objectives since January 2006. This Contractor has been approved by the Public Works Department’s Purchasing Division on February 18, 2025.
On May 26, 2020, the Board of Supervisors approved Contract #23-384-14 with Language Line Services, Inc., in an amount not to exceed $6,810,000, for the provision of Federal and State mandated interpretation and translation services and back-up telephonic services to our HCIN, for the period May 1, 2020 through April 30, 2025.
On January 14, 2025, the Board of Supervisors approved Contract Amendment #23-384-15 with Language Line Services, Inc., effective November 1, 2024, to increase in the payment limit by $3,000,000 to a new payment limit of $9,810,000, to provide additional Federal and State mandated interpretation and translation services and back-up telephonic services with no change in the term.
Due to the unanticipated increase need for translation and interpretation, services were requested by County and provided by Contractor in good faith.
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 original Contract payment limit had been reached. The Department cannot pay 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 $116,412.19 to Language Line Services, Inc.
CONSEQUENCE OF NEGATIVE ACTION:
If this payment is not approved, the Contractor will not be paid for services requested by County staff and provided by Contractor in good faith.