Administration and Financial Management

Administration and Financial Management
Melissa Royce, Director
275 E. Main St.
Frankfort Ky., 40621
(502) 564-6663

Division Mission Statement

To provide the governor, the Cabinet for Health and Family Services and the commonwealth objective research, analysis, advice and management assistance on policy, budget, financial, contract, procurement and economic issues to ensure the fiscal integrity and continuity of state government regarding the Department for Public Health and the 56 local health departments.

In Fiscal Year 2003, DPH expended about $235 million, 52.4 percent of which were federal dollars. Total expenditures for Kentucky’s state and local health departments totalled approximately $355 million from state and federal funds, local taxes, local agency funds and fees for services. One of four departments in the Cabinet for Health and Family Services, DPH has a staff of 393 at the state level divided among seven divisions.   

The division also is responsible for daily operations of local health departments (LHD) across the state. This responsibility includes training and staff development, personnel management, public health nursing, medical records and forms management, reporting of clinical and community-based services, operating the online local health network, policy interpretation and the local board of heath nomination process. 

The division is the primary liaison between DPH and LHD. It determines allocations of $120 million to LHDs to support local and state health initiatives and is responsible for coordinating training and education activities for the bioterrorism preparedness grant.

The Division of Administration and Financial Management provides resource support to DPH including the 393 Cabinet-level staff members and nearly 4,000 health department staff. The division provides budget and accounting support, payments, grant allocation and payments, permits and fee collection, procurement and contracting support. The division develops and oversees the DPH budget and local health departments’ fiscal planning and administrative and management practices. It provides fiscal support to all 120 counties of the commonwealth. The division works in concert with the other divisions to plan, program, execute, manage and report the financial activities of the department and local health departments. 

The division has orchestrated a statewide public health initiative to ensure compliance with the federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). As the state's lead agency on HIPAA, the division is responsible for planning and implementation of policy, procedural and technical changes to DPH and local health department operations as they relate to the privacy and confidentiality of identifiable patient  information.

Mike Tuggle
Administrative Branch Manager
(502) 564-6663, Ext. 3602

The Budget Branch is divided into two sections: The State Budget Section and the Local Health Budget Section. The mission of this branch is to provide total financial oversight of both the Department’s budget as well as the 56 Local Health Departments’ budget which is in excess of $480 million dollars.

State Budget Section

The State Budget Section is responsible for preparing the biennial budget for the Department and implementing spending plans approved by the Governor; preparing all budget modifications and realignments for the Department and recommending them to the Governor’s Office of Policy and Management (GOPM); reviewing and analyzing revenue and expenditure data as it relates to the Departmental budget in order to provide management with information to make policy and budget adjustments; preparing federal grant reports and budget presentations; providing budget information/data to senior and executive staff at the Federal Government, Cabinet, and Governor’s Office of Policy and Management (GOPM), and the Legislative Research Commission (LRC);  and approving required accounting elements for each contract in the Department. This section also provides revenue account codes for refund checks received from vendors; approve inter-account documents; schedules and reviews encumbrance reports monthly; and prepares journal vouchers as needed. Additionally, this section approves and processes all payment and purchase requests through the state Electronic Management Administrative and Reporting System (eMARS) and serves as a liaison for assisting and informing department eMARS users with setup and security; information updates; troubleshooting and training. 

Local Health Budget Section

Sandra Griffin
Supervisor
(502) 564-4990, Ext. 3610

The Local Budget Section provides technical and consultative assistance to 56 local health departments regarding general accounting, budget and financial statement interpretation and analysis, assurance of proper financial internal controls, minimum local taxation submission and approval, conducts on-site financial reviews, and audit oversight. The section also ensures the provision of financial training regarding regulations 902 KAR 8:170 and 902 KAR 8:165 to improve operations and fiscal accountability, and advise on any health department issues. This section reviews and approves annually the financial portion of the health departments’ plans and budgets; reconciles bank statements for health departments under financial review; and coordinates audit reviews conducted by the Office of Inspector General.

This section also prepares projections of revenue and expenditures for all local health departments on a quarterly basis or monthly if needed; prepares annual LHD closeout reports; and provides special on-site technical assistance to health departments. This section processes Medicaid Preventive payments in the amount of $28.3 million to LHDs and HANDS remittance advices of $21.3 million; and prepares the cost center spread for posting of checks to local health departments.

Judy Solomon
Administrative Branch Manager
(502) 564-6663, Ext. 3787

The Contracts and Payments Branch is responsible for funding 56 Local Health Departments throughout the Commonwealth and insuring that state and federal funds are allocated and paid in accordance with the Department for Public Health’s administrative policy and federal guidelines as well as adherence to mandated guidelines from the Finance and Administration Cabinet.

The Contracts and Payments Branch provides technical support to the 56 Local Health Departments on allocations, payments and contracts as well as other state contracted public health vendors.

Contract Section

Jenny Glass
Administrative Section Supervisor
(502) 564-4990, Ext. 3609

The Contract Section processes over 8,236 grant transactions totaling $146M annually to Local Health Departments as well as develops 56 Memoranda of Agreement with the Local Health Departments. The Section creates five multi-provider agreements in the Electronic Management Administrative and Reporting System (E-MARS) for Local Health Departments. The Section develops 246+ personal services contracts, memoranda of agreement, memoranda of understanding, and modifications to universities and miscellaneous vendors annually. Staff are responsible for reviewing and processing the LHDs subcontracts in excess of $10,000, annually. Last year, over 408 subcontracts were reviewed, tracked, and processed by the contracts staff. In addition, the Section tracks all contract personnel throughout the Department for Public Health.

Payment Section 

Jenny Glass
Administrative Section Supervisor
(502) 564-4990, Ext. 3609

The Payment Section is responsible for Payments to Local Health Departments totaling $142 million annually. The Section processes 18,015+ payments annually. The Section distributes an Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) report to the 56 Local Health Departments approximately twice monthly along with a Grants and Payments report (R-6) which is electronically disseminated monthly. The Section is responsible for reconciliations between the Branch’s Grants and Payments Database and eMARS. The Section bills, tracks, and collects Newborn Screening services and fees from various providers totaling $2.8 million annually. The Section is also responsible for all Inventory, Fixed Assets, Surplus Property and all E-Mars fixed asset reporting for the entire Department for Public Health.

Ron Horseman
Administrative Branch Manager
(502) 564-4990, Ext. 3654

The Local Health Operations Branch is responsible for the day-to-day operations of the Local Health Departments (LHDs). This responsibility includes medical records and forms management, reporting of clinical and community-based services, operating the online local health network, policy, regulations, and statutory interpretation.

The Public Health Support Branch has strengthened its ability to help local health departments with proper reporting and record keeping. The Branch’s motto “Do it right the first time” has led to improved data collection, fewer billing errors, maximized collections, and improved overall efficiency in health records. Finally, the division has worked with local health departments and the Department for Medicaid Services and the private sector to identify alternative sources of revenue for local health departments.

The Local Health Operations Branch consists of two sections, the Third Party Reimbursement Section and the Clinical Financial Section.

Third Party Reimbursement Section

Barbara Wiesenhahn
Third-Party Reimbursement Section Supervisor
(502) 564-4990, Ext. 3641

The Third Party Reimbursement Section is responsible for the completion of the Preventive Medicaid and HANDS cost reports as required by the Medicaid Program. Preventive Medicaid and HANDS expenditures for all 56 local health departments along with the Preventive Medicaid, HANDS, and indirect expenditures of the Cabinet are used to compute the federally allowable cost of Preventive Medicaid and HANDS services. In addition, this section prepares the quarterly home health administrative charges and maintains depreciation schedules for the HCB program.  Staff are also responsible for the Medicare Resource Based Relative Values (MRBRV) for the Patient Services and Reporting System (PSRS); and provide training on billing and coding in these areas to health departments.

Clinical Financial Section

Vacant
Administrative Section Supervisor
(502) 564-4990

The Clinical Financial Section responds to special data requests from health departments and DPH staff, operates the LHD Helpdesk, and develops standardized departmental publications via the web and ensures the availability to local health departments and the public. 

Vacant
Administrative Section Supervisor
(502) 564-6663

The Local Health Personnel Branch’s purpose is to ensure that employees in the Local Health Departments as well as applicants receive the highest quality human resource services in the areas of employment counseling, applicant processing, maintaining and updating selection criteria, maintaining employee records, creation of job classifications and salary computations for all local health departments.  The Branch is responsible for the operation and maintenance of the personnel system for 53 of the 56 local health departments and their approximate 4,000 employees; providing support for the five-member Local Health Department Employment Personnel Council and recommending changes in the compensation and classification plan. The Branch helps health departments recruit qualified employees by reviewing applications, processing personnel appointments, salary adjustments, reclassifications, and promotions; and maintaining master personnel records and a register of applicants. The Branch conducts regional training programs for local health department directors, supervisors, and personnel specialists. Subjects include progressive discipline, employee performance evaluations, personnel regulations, sexual harassment, and recruitment of qualified employees.

Employee Management Section

The Employee Management Section is responsible for reviewing/processing personnel documents and position actions; maintaining the central personnel files; implementing layoff plans; and monitoring and assisting agencies in complying with the provisions of the Federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). This section is responsible for preparing and maintaining job classification and compensation plans for LHD employees covered by KRS 211, including the review of all personnel position actions, job audits, revision of class specifications and salary surveys.

Staffing Services Section

The Staffing Service Section is responsible for operation of a centralized applicant and employee counseling program for LHD employment; the LHD register program including the administration of layoff plans and coordination of outreach programs for recruitment of applicants. This section is responsible for the design, development and implementation of strategic human resource projects consisting of maintaining the Local Health Personnel web site; and assists with problem resolution associated with data processing hardware and software.