By Joyce Kryszak
Buffalo, NY – The 2006 Erie County budget brings back some of the jobs and programs cut in a flurry earlier this year. The department of Social Services was one area particularly hard hit.
Social Services lost more than 100 workers during the budget cutting frenzy last spring. In the months since then, the department has had to adapt.
According to Commissioner Michael Weiner, that's meant case loads have nearly doubled in many areas. For example, Medicaid examiners currently manage 1,000 cases. Case workers for Child Protective Services must investigate and monitor as many as 30 high-risk abuse cases. Weiner says that can put children in danger.
"The enormity of the case loads breads a lot of inefficiencies and generates the potential for greater risk, to the child, and or the family," said Weiner. "For example, with the higher case loads you tend not to see the children as frequently. You're not networking with supportive services with the same intensity. You're not involved with the family with the same level of intensity to resolve matters that could put the child at risk, or of a safety concern."
For their own safety, Weiner says what happens in some cases is that children end up placed in foster care or residential facilities. And he says that can cost as much as $86,000 per child. Medicaid fraud investigations were also cut back, also costing the county money. But 84 positions, across the department, are back as of January 1st. Weiner says that number is close to what was recommended by the Buffalo Niagara Partnership and the PFM financial consulting group.
"It's not like we just created this in a vacuum, without any thought and thought and analysis as to what outside consultants had recommended as well," said Weiner. "It was truly very consistent. Everybody who came in and provided analysis said we needed to do major restorations in critical areas."
Also included in the 2006 budget is $3.4 million for restoration of about half of the community agency contracts that supplement social services.