LWVSJ Observer Corps | Board of Health May 22, 2024

||| FROM NECIA QUAST for LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS |||

Some Accountable Communities for Health (ACH) partners will present to the board on their local projects later this year. The ACH is still waiting on details of how the Medicaid waiver will affect care coordination. Mark Thompkins will present at a conference on equity in Atlanta in August. The Community Collaborative Committee gave an additional $5,000 grant to the Foodbank where members learned demand goes up in the summer as seasonal workers use services. The Mullis Center is creating a caregiver list. The North Sound Behavioral Health ASO will have some contingency funding available and will hold a retreat on June 3.

Kyle Dodd presented the annual report on the Environmental Health activities. The Department issues permits and does inspections for on-site sewer systems, solid waste, drinking water, pools and spas, and food safety. They test local waters for shellfish safety, investigate animal bites and zoonotic disease outbreaks. They have seen a drop in sewer and well permit requests in 2023 vs. 2022. They investigated 16 animal bites including one from a bat that was positive for rabies. They implemented a new on-line system for managing sewer system inspections. They continue to offer training for homeowners to do their sewer inspections themselves.

Housing coordinator Ryan Page and SAFE San Juans Director Dave Dunaway reported on the Rapid Re-Housing Program that Safe San Juans runs for domestic violence victims. Funds for the program first became available in 2020 in response to the Covid epidemic and continue to be offered by the state. The funds pay for temporary housing for victims of domestic violence and their children, while they seek permanent safe housing and get medical care and support services. With no shelter in the county, such funds have made a huge difference in ensuring that survivors do not return to their abuser. In 2023 Safe San Juans assisted 112 people experiencing Domestic violence and 28 experiencing sexual assault.

The board gave approval to Mark Thompkins to explore the possibility of sharing a county health officer with Whatcom County and to begin work on a job description to recruit a new county health officer in the wake of the retirement of Dr, James. There will be no Board of Health meeting in June.

The League of Women Voters, a nonpartisan organization encourages informed participation in government. The Observer Corps attends and takes notes at government meetings to expand public understanding of public policy and decisions. The notes do not necessarily reflect the views of the League or its members.