Health district approves 2018 budget
EPHRATA — With the return of mumps to Grant County and flu season having begun in earnest, the board of directors overseeing the Grant County Health District approved a $2.62 million budget for 2018.
At its regular meeting held recently, the board unanimously approved the budget, which falls about $8,700 short of being in balance — funds which the district will take from its reserves. And it is roughly 2 percent lower than this year’s health district budget.
While the bulk of the budget will come from federal and state grants, Health District Administrator Theresa Adkinson said that contributions from cities across Grant County for 2018 are up nearly 50 percent from what they were in 2017 — up to $87,766 from $58,936.
“I cannot thank board members enough for the work you did with your councils,” Adkinson said. “Quincy doubled its contribution.”
The health district deals not only with disease outbreaks — such as mumps and whooping cough — but also engages in preventative health programs, such as tobacco, alcohol, and marijuana awareness. The district also inspects restaurants, approves water and septic systems, and traps and tests mosquitoes for disease.
According to Grant County Health Officer Alexander Brzezny, in addition to the current reported case of mumps in Grant County — found in a Moses Lake healthcare worker — there is a second suspected case and a third possible case health officials are trying to track down.
“We’re waiting for a blood test to confirm,” Brzezny said.
Right now, there is a full-blown mumps outbreak in Hawaii, and given this is the season for travel to and from the Aloha State, Brzezny said he expects more cases of mumps. In fact, Grant County had the highest rate of mumps in the state during the outbreak earlier this year.
“We just got back,” said Grant County Commission Chair Cindy Carter, who is also a member of the health district board.
Brzezny said that vaccination is the best way to prevent the spread of the disease. The MMR vaccine — measles, mumps, and rubella — is 88-90 percent effective, meaning that only one in 10 vaccinated people will catch the disease, as opposed to 60 percent of unvaccinated people.
And folks who are vaccinated who catch the disease will have milder symptoms, Brzezny added.
The 2017 mumps outbreak — which was declared over in July — cost the health district more than $100,000 to deal with.
Brzezny also said the rate of pertussis, or whooping cough, in Grant County were also the highest in Washington.
Brzezny said he was concerned about the potential for a very difficult influenza season this winter. During the Southern Hemisphere’s winter, Brzezny said Australia had five times the number of reported flu cases this year over last year.
“Seasonal flu has taken off,” he said. “One percent of all visits to the doctor right now are flu related.”
Finally, Brzezny said he was also concerned about a meningitis outbreak at Oregon State University.
“Five cases have been reported, and there are students from Grant County who attend that school, so some cases might present,” he said.
He advised any students coming home for Christmas break from Oregon State to get a special vaccine, since the strain of meningitis reported is Strain B, which is not included in the standard meningitis vaccination.
“It is not routinely vaccinated for,” Brzezny said.
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