8 MONTEREY COUNTY WEEKLY march 14-20, 2024 www.montereycountyweekly.com news The fallout of last month’s massive cyberattack by the hacking group BlackCat on UnitedHealth’s digital reimbursement clearinghouse that threatened the existence of clinics and pharmacies across the country has ensnared a small therapy provider, Equine Healing Collaborative. The Carmel Valley-based nonprofit delivers services to 400-450 children and adults every month. “I have to furlough you, I’m not going to make payroll,” EHC Executive Director Jennifer Fenton remembers telling her five full-time clinicians, soon after Change Healthcare, UnitedHealth’s clearinghouse for reimbursement claims, was shut down on Feb. 21. The move left EHC without reimbursement for tens of thousands of dollars, according to Fenton. At least 48 appointments had to be canceled. The furloughed employees are continuing to see their clients as volunteers, Fenton says. Six part-time clinicians, seven volunteer clinicians and student interns are also seeing clients at EHC’s four locations, three in Monterey County and one in Santa Cruz County. Fenton says UnitedHealth offered workarounds for repayment, but those workarounds took EHC staff hundreds of hours and have not been successful. EHC started a GoFundMe account (bit.ly/ehcemergency) asking for donations to keep them afloat. The cyberattack fallout has left providers like Fenton angry that UnitedHealth, which earned $371.6 billion in revenue in 2023, did not invest more money in cybersecurity. On March 7, UnitedHealth estimated it would be able to process claims beginning March 18, but it will take two additional weeks before EHC sees any money. Unmerry-Go-Round A local equine therapy group falls victim to UnitedHealth cyberattack. By Pam Marino The planned new County of Monterey building in Seaside doesn’t have a name yet, nor has the county identified funding to build it, which the latest estimate pegs at $115 million. But what county officials do have is a vision. At Seaside’s Oldemeyer Center on Feb. 29, County Supervisor Wendy Root Askew hosted a town hall meeting to talk about that vision. After a few opening remarks, Askew handed it off to Lori Medina, director of the county’s Department of Social Services and the first of one of a handful of speakers whose agency has a stake in the future of the project, which would replace an aging county building at the same location at 1281 Broadway Ave. Her department serves half of the county residents in a given year through a full gamut of services, among them child welfare and abuse prevention, cash aid, aging and adult services, and veteran and military affairs. In the existing county building at the site, Medina says, about 63 staff members facilitate the distribution of about $194 million of benefits annually. About 25,000 county residents visit the existing building each month. When the idea to replace or refurbish the existing building first started to be discussed, Medina said, it generated a vision of a campus that could provide other services too. In the plans, the Monterey County Free Libraries branch in Seaside, currently located next to Seaside City Hall, would move into the county building. The District Attorney’s Office would have a place as well—the idea is that the place can be a hub for a whole suite of county services. “We want a safe, affirming and inviting facility for our families,” Medina told the crowd. “This is not going to be just another county building. We’re looking at a new way of doing business, and we think this can be a model for how the county does business in the future.” District Attorney Jeannine Pacioni described plans for a family justice center in the building to help build resilience and support children dealing with trauma. “What do you need to build hope that the future is better than today?” she said. The DA’s Office already has a King City site for a family justice center, and this would give them a Peninsula location. Hillary Theyer, the county’s library director, noted the plan includes a library that would match the existing library’s size. She said the Seaside branch has the most hours of operation of any county library branch, and is a critical connector for the community and the resources the county provides that may help them. One problem planners are still trying to solve is what to do about Casa de Noche Buena, a nonprofit homeless shelter that houses women and families and provides case management for residents. As currently envisioned, the plan will displace the organization’s existing building on the county-owned campus. Architect Kyle Matti says it’s something he and his team are working to incorporate, if possible. And every county official in attendance agrees that Casa de Noche Buena will continue to have their full support—it’s just a matter of finding a new location if it can’t remain onsite. Root Askew estimates the project will cost between $100-$200 million. The design phase of plans for the County of Monterey’s Seaside campus call for a 60,000-square-foot, four-story building and 250-space parking structure. Leveling Up The county’s plan to replace a building in Seaside promises to be an upgrade in services and aesthetics. By David Schmalz Equine Healing Collaborative Executive Director Jennifer Fenton with Skip, a therapy horse that helps treat clients. EHC is hanging on financially, waiting for delayed insurance reimbursements. “This is not going to be just another county building.” NM&R Architects Daniel Dreifuss
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