EAST WENATCHEE — Impromptu discussions about COVID-19 vaccines and vaccine safety will no longer be allowed following a vote at Monday’s monthly Chelan-Douglas Board of Health meeting.
Instead, discussions related to the topics will need to be listed on the agenda ahead of time, according to the motion that passed.
East Wenatchee mayor Jerrilea Crawford
Jerrilea Crawford, East Wenatchee mayor, introduced the motion following a discussion led by another board member, Bill Sullivan, on whether the health district’s consent forms were adequate in detailing the benefits and risks of COVID-19 vaccines.
“We need a process here, so we’re not held hostage by repeating the same conversation over and over again,” said Jerrilea Crawford, board member and East Wenatchee mayor.
Bill Sullivan
Chelan-Douglas Health District Board member
Sullivan, a newly appointed board member on the expanded 11-member board, has on repeated occasions questioned the safety and effectiveness of vaccines, especially for children.
At the September meeting, Sullivan introduced a motion to stand up a committee that would review the consent forms the health district provides before administering a COVID-19, which go over the potential risks and side effects of the vaccine.
Sullivan’s September motion failed 10-1.
In August, Sullivan introduced a motion which would have prohibited the health district from administering and promoting COVID-19 vaccines for minors. That motion also failed.
Sullivan, on Monday, used time allotted for “board discussion,” a period allowing board members to bring up topics not listed on the agenda, to again question the adequacy of the health district’s consent forms.
Monday’s motion does not prohibit the board from discussing COVID-19-related matters as the board’s health officer provides COVID-19 information at each monthly meeting as part of an “epidemiologist update.”
It does prohibit single members from bringing up “COVID-19 vaccines, informed consent on vaccines, reactions to COVID vaccines or COVID vaccine-related deaths” as a topic during board discussion, as Sullivan has for the past couple of months.
The topic can be raised if it’s put on the agenda ahead of time. The agenda is set by the board’s executive committee made up of the board’s chair, vice chair and the health district’s administrator.
Sullivan said at the Monday meeting that he had hoped to get his discussion regarding the health district’s informed consent forms on the agenda last month, but the executive committee did not want to do that as they “felt like the COVID discussion is over.”
Kevin Overbay, Chelan County commissioner and chairman of the board, asked that Sullivan address the board “with a sense of decorum.”
Kevin Overbay
Chelan County commissioner
Provided photo
“On multiple occasions today, and in the past, you’ve attacked the board and members of the board through comments, whether it’s passive-aggressive comments that you’ve made, and as the chair I don’t appreciate it,” Overbay said. “With regards to the addressing of this board, you can make your points without trying to throw people under the bus, whether it’s true or may not be true.”
The Chelan-Douglas Health District is a special purpose district — a separate entity connected to local government meant to perform one function — like water or irrigation districts. It is meant to protect public health, but it also sets fees for restaurant and septic permits, for example.
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