Commissioners work on health business

Wahkiakum County commissioners will hold public hearings before updating the county's septic sewer and food safety ordinances on February 17.

"The changes won't increase anything for anybody," Sue Cameron, director of the Department of Health and Human Services, said Tuesday in asking the board to hold the hearings. "It just puts in place what we're already doing."

Administrative assistant Chris Weiler added that the proposed changes simply refer to changed numbers in the Washington Administrative Code.

"Our current code refers to a portion of the state code that no longer exists," Weiler said.

Wahkiakum County and southwest Washington have avoided the outbreak of measles that started a month ago in California.

Dr. Sarah Present, public health officer, encouraged people to be vaccinated. Infants under one year of age and people with certain medical conditions can't be vaccinated, but most people can be vaccinated safely, she commented to the county commission.

If 94 percent of a population is vaccinated against measles, the disease doesn't spread, she said.

"We have just under 90 percent of the population vaccinated in Washington," she said.

Commissioners granted the Health Department authority to modify rates charged clients under Medicaid, Medicare and private insurance billings.

Weiler explained that the department would set rates at the 50th percentile of all regional healthcare providers delivering the same services, meaning the rate would be what 50 percent of the providers are charging.

Because rates change unexpectedly, the department felt it would be cumbersome to bring each change to the county board for action.

Commissioners agreed and voted to give the department the authority to adjust rates as needed.

Cameron also informed the board that federal funding for the county's Americorps program is ending. She asked the board to consider funding the program for the next two fiscal years, at $7,200 per year.

"That's a lot of money," commented Commissioner Mike Backman.

Commissioners took no action and suggested Cameron seek other funding partners, and she replied that she was already doing that.