NASHVILLE — The Nash County Board of Commissioners on Monday adopted a resolution seeking to phase out the county's share of Medicaid costs by 2009.
"North Carolina is one of only two states ... in the nation that require counties to pay a share of all Medicaid services costs," Nash County Manager Bob Murphy said. "In Nash County, Medicaid costs comprise more than 7 cents of the 66-cent tax rate. Medicaid costs for the county have grown 33 percent in five years, and 15.4 percent of Nash County's population is Medicaid eligible."
Murphy said N.C. Rep. Julia Howard, R-Davie, has introduced a bill supporting state assumption of counties' shares of Medicaid. Several other bills will be introduced on the measure in the General Assembly, he said, including one that already has been introduced in the N.C. Senate.
Murphy said Nash County pays about $4.1 million, or 6 percent, of its expenditures for Medicaid services. In North Carolina, the counties' share of Medicaid reimbursements has increased more than 67 percent in the last five years and totals about $440 million, he said.
"The amount the county spends on Medicaid has been steadily rising over the years," he said. "We have budgeted $4.5 million this year and will be very lucky to stay within that amount."
Murphy said counties' participation in the Medicaid program initially was to make local government more cognizant of where and how the funds were used.
"We don't set Medicaid standards or set the costs, and state assumption of the program would phase out the county's share of Medicaid over a period of years. High-poverty counties in northeastern North Carolina would be phased out more rapidly."
Commissioner Fred Belfield, who serves on the N.C. Association of County Commissioners, made a motion to approve the resolution. Belfield said the association favored state assumption of the program. His motion received a second from Commissioner Lou Richardson.
"I am asking our delegation to sign on to all bills that have been introduced on this matter in the General Assembly," Belfield said.
In other business, commissioners approved a request by Nash County Health Director Bill Hill to waive solid waste tipping fees for disposal of vacant or abandoned mobile homes for at least 90 days.
Hill said a recent inventory by the Nash County Planning Department indicates that there are about 200 vacant or abandoned mobile homes in Nash County.
"In all probability, many of these units were abandoned on property owned by another party and have become an eyesore for Nash County," he said.
Waiving the solid waste tipping fees on demolition of abandoned mobile homes has been operated well in Brunswick and Onslow and other counties that have taken on this program, Hill said.
"The county will accept mobile homes as they are," Hill said. "We can take a home off its chassis in 15 to 20 minutes and dismantle it. We will recycle chassis and other parts to recoup some of our cost."
Hill said at the current tipping fee charged by the county, the approximate cost for disposing of a 14- by 80-foot mobile home would be $535, plus dismantling and transportation costs.
"In an effort to encourage disposal of these homes, we propose to advertise and then offer disposal free of charge for at least 90 days, effective Feb. 15 through May 15," he said. "After 90 days, we will re-evaluate the program to determine if an extension is warranted and should be recommended. If the time frame is ultimately not extended, the normal tipping fee of $34 per ton would then apply."
Hill said the disposal process will require the mobile home owner or landowner to obtain a permit at no charge from the planning department to move or dispose of a mobile home. The permit will allow the county to track demolition of mobile homes, he said.
