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An Ordinance of the County of Allegheny, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, amending the Allegheny County Administrative Code by adding a new Article 919 that governs Office of Mental Retardation/Developmental Disabilities (MR/DD) contracts by providing that vendors provide information about the quality of service, work force, and business practices of its agency and comply with County requests for information as conditions of its contract.
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WHEREAS, in Allegheny County there are over 9,500 people with mental retardation or developmental disabilities that are served through home and community-based systems by not-for-profit agencies with which the County contracts at an annual cost of over $180 million; and
WHEREAS, home and community-based services are cost-effective and high in customer satisfaction and served a desperate need caused by decades of deinstitutionalization, a need that is expected to increase again as elderly family caretakers look for support for aging children; and
WHEREAS, a large amount of information on individuals providers is currently requested by the County MR/DD Office or the Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare, but the information is not easy to find or navigate for consumers, yet is public information that should be accessible to clients and caregivers who are seeking to make decisions about community-based care; and
WHEREAS, the County currently offers services and support directories for families and consumers navigating the system of community-based care; the implementation of a Provider Report with additional public information that provides “report cards” in areas that impact upon the quality of care that each provider offers, further allowing an evaluation of the efficiency, effectiveness, and success of each provider.
The Council of the County of Allegheny hereby enacts as follows:
SECTION 1.
The provisions set forth in the preamble to this Ordinance are incorporated by reference in the...
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