The Stearns County Board of Commissioners set their 2004 fee schedule for the Department of Human Services. Included in this fee list is licensing charges for home daycares. Initially in the proposal, licensing would have cost as much as $250 per daycare every two years. Tuesday, the board adopted a plan that minimized those costs to a maximum of $175 every two years. Providers would pay $125 for the actual licensing and $25 per person with a maximum of $50 for the background study done on those either living in the home or caring for the children. The County’s total cost each time it licenses a daycare is approximately $850 per applicant. The Board unanimously agreed to reduce the proposed rates after hearing testimony from residents. Commissioner Larry Haws said, “I do sympathize but there is going to have to be some fees. We’re pushed up against the wall. This revenue to us and it keeps us from having to make cuts to another program. This is a very hurting time and I hope this is an acceptable compromise.” Commissioner Don Otte empathized for residents living in his district in western Stearns County. “I have a lot of sympathy for people in my area. There are fewer kids in daycare and the wage scale is less in western Stearns County, so this will have a bigger impact on their income.” This is the first time the County is charging any type of licensing fee to home daycare providers. Higher health care fees Other fees approved by the Board include higher supervision and drug testing fees for criminal offenders and a $295 per day charge for detox services, up from last year’s fee of $230. A $10 per hour donation will also be asked of any organization or business that uses the Community Service Crews, inmates who serve part of their sentence doing community service work. Currently, there is no such charge. Lastly, donation requests were raised for public health services, immunizations went from $6 to $8, flu vaccinations from $7 to $15 and the Senior Health Clinic went from $8 to $9. All new fees will take effect in 2004. Stearns County flu season It is a busy flu season. Renee Frauendienst, the County’s Public Health Division Director, stopped in to give a quick update to the Board. She said all the flu activity across the nation is sparking an increased demand from local people for the shot. The Public Health Division encourages everyone to get a flu shot. It’s not too late. You can call your health provider to set up an appointment. Otherwise, the county does still have a limited amount of the vaccine left. For an appointment, you can call them at (320) 656-6000. Although 70 percent of the flu strains that we’re seeing in this county is different than what’s in the vaccination there is still some cross-protective immunity, which means although it can’t completely protect you from those flu strains it can lessen the illness. She said that’s still a good reason to get everyone immunized.
