East Washingtonian - Your Hometown News Source

POMEROY–The Garfield County Health District board approved resolutions at its meeting on June 28.

Resolution 2021-13 is a data-sharing agreement with the Washington State Department of Health, allowing counties to view the COVID-19 data of other counties to prevent duplication of treatment and administrative efforts. The data will only be shared in a secure State database with other Washington counties and will be strictly related to COVID-19. Garfield County Commissioner Justin Dixon expressed concern that the resolution will set a precedent for greater state control over patient privacy.

Resolution 2021-14 is an extension to a pre-existing contract with ABCDental from July 1, 2021 to June 30, 2022. This contract will provide $2,800 to the Health District, as well as allow local dentists to receive enhanced reimbursement for child patients covered by Medicaid. This will be the third year the Health District has contracted with ABCDental.

Resolution 2021-15 is a data sharing agreement with the Washington State Auditor, which places state mandated limits on what the auditor can do with data they receive.

The Health District will purchase 10 air quality monitoring sensors from PurpleAir which will be placed around the county. These will be used to improve accuracy of Health District recommendations on activity during low air quality periods. Locations of the sensors has yet to be determined.

Garfield County Health District Administrator Martha Lanman announced that the Health District has received two grants from Blue Mountain Community Foundation. One is for $10,000 to pay for transportation and other expenses for a four-day workshop teaching about the Scratch Food Program and how to incorporate local produce into healthier school lunches. The other is for $5,000 to pay for dental supplies across Garfield, Columbia and Asotin counties. The breakdown of the money is not yet decided.

Vaccinations will be available at the Pomeroy Medical Clinic on July 16 and 23. Patients will be encouraged to take the heat into consideration as it can cause worsened reactions.

Administrator Lanman expressed her thanks to Secretary Laura Dixon for her hard work and adaptability to keep current with changing codes. “I couldn’t have done it without her” Lanman said. “Thank you Laura.”

Patti Weaver’s letter of interest for a position on the board has been accepted and she will be invited to join after budget decisions later in the year.

The Health District office will be closed on July 15 and 16 for annual cleaning.