Happy Thursday afternoon! I'm watching the Panhandle Health District Board of Health meeting (my fourth BOH meeting this week!!) Updates here. #idahocovid19

Jeff Lee from Kootenai Health: "This is going to be short, bu I can't guarantee sweet." Lee says cases are surpassing peaks from July. I can't see the slides on this stream, but Lee says they may quickly outstrip hospital's availability. #idahocovid19

Lee says his slide is already out of date. "We've had three more deaths since I updated this an hour ago." #idahocovid19

Positivity at 15 percent at Kootenai Health, which exceeds what the hospital saw in July.

Boundary and Kootenai Counties have exceeded critical levels for current 7 day incidence rates. Bonner and Benewah are still at moderate, and Shoshone is high.

Lee finished up his presentation and they're letting attendees/members of the public who aren't board members ask questions. (There was no scheduled public comment at this meeting.)

So this is quickly turning into "This is more of a comment than a question..." session, with people who don't understand case fatality rates.

:) :) :)

There's someone who is talking over the presenter from Kootenai Health and not letting him answer, and it's time for me to get another cup of coffee.

Jeff Lee from Kootenai Health is still explaining why this is different than the flu.

Jeff Lee from Kootenai Health is a patient man.

While a woman is trying to convince Lee that flu is more deadly, which is simply untrue, Lee points out that the health district saw 56 deaths due to flu over four seasons.

Over seven months, they've had 73 deaths, and counting. #idahocovid19

Rep. Wisniewski asks about mask mandates when elderly are most affected.

Lee: "Do you wear seatbelts, sir?"
Wisniewski: "I do."
"Why?"
"Because it's the law."

Wisniewski then says it was the law in Germany for people to turn in Jewish neighbors during WWII. #idleg

Lee defended widespread mask use, pointing out that it protects the elderly and vulnerable.

Virologist Dr. Karen Yao is now presenting on types of COVID tests.

Yao gave in-depth explanations about the tests. Note: She began her presentation by calling it the "China virus," then corrected herself. It seems like it was a joke. (I don't know Yao, but her family name is of Chinese origin.)

(Hate crimes against Asians and Asian Americans in the US have surged since the beginning of the pandemic. https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/covid-19-and-the-surge-in-anti-asian-hate-crimes)

Jeff Lee is up again to discuss hospital capacity at Kootenai Health. "I wish I had good news to report. I wish that was why we were here today.” Hospital is nearly full, and the hospital is facing staffing shortages. #idahocovid19

Dr. Robert Scoggins: Our hospital wasn't built for a pandemic. Echoes what we've heard from so many other hospital officials around the state: COVID-19 patients require more resources and staff help than other ailments.

There is a new doctor presenting (I didn't hear him introduce himself) who is pointing out that he and Dr. Scoggins are the only ones in the room who have taken care of COVID patients. Asks the people in the room to please listen to them and their medical expertise.

"These patients cling to life for days or weeks.” They struggle to breathe during the most basic activities, like eating or sitting up in bed. Many of them stop eating because it's so exhausting and difficult to breathe.

There's an extreme fear among these patients of dropping oxygen levels. ""They fear the ventilator.... it's like nothing I've ever seen." He has personally cared for critically ill patients in 30s, 40s and 50s.

Older patients lose their battle with COVID "at an alarming rate."

Reiterates that people can spread the disease before they show symptoms. Reiterates the importance of mask use. Reiterates that people should listen to medical professionals instead of social media rumors.

Asks board to extend mask mandate.

Jeremy Evans: On average, Kootenai Health runs at 80 to 85 percent capacity. Yesterday they were at 99 percent occupancy.

Positivity continues to be high, and hospitalizations are a lagging indicator.

The hospital has had to defer heart, abdominal and neuro surgeries. Staffing shortages (there are 27 currently out because of COVID) are putting stress on remaining staff.

One of the board members is now talking about how he took a lot of heat for voting to mandate masks a few months ago. Says he can take that criticism, but there's something to be said about how many of these local officials had noooooooooo idea what they were signing up for.

Some cynical and frustrated comments from Commissioner Walt Kirby of Boundary County. Says he's 90 years old and no longer cares if other people don't listen to the advice on masks and distancing. "I'm just sitting back and watching them catch it and die."

There are still commissioners who are skeptical about the surge. "Something is making these people sick, and I'm pretty sure it's not coronavirus. So the question is that you should be asking is what is making these people sick?"

There is NO. EVIDENCE. This isn't COVID.

I can't see who is talking because the camera is trained on the screen. "I appreciate your efforts.... I think you're mistaken about what's causing it."

Doc response: "I find your comments very interesting. Most of them wrong. Isolating a virus is very simple these days."

Doc continues: "I don't think I'm going to convince you. I realize that.... But the science is very solid. Over 60,000 papers have been published on COVID 19."

"We need to really be careful about what we say, especially when we're on a board like this."

Another doc points out that after the first mask mandate, positives went down. Now going up because people heading inside and COVID fatigue, he says.

(Process of elimination based on others who spoke after him: The person who doubts COVID exists was Allen Banks, who has been skeptical of COVID for months and has spread conspiracy theories at previous meetings, including one that started in Tanzania about fruit testing pos.)

Right now there is a motion on the floor to rescind the existing mask order in Kootenai County.

The Panhandle Health District Board of Health has voted 4-3 to rescind the mask order for Kootenai County. #idahocovid19 #idpol

(Notable that the two representatives on the board from Kootenai County voted against rescinding the order that affects their county.) #idahocovid19 #idpol

They are now discussing reconfirming an existing mask recommendation passed in July, except they are changing one phrase. The motion: No longer recommending businesses REQUIRE masks. Instead, recommending businesses SUGGEST masks. (So even weaker language.)

A substitute motion passed that keeps the original recommendation. In other words, no on the weaker language.

Like all good Board of Health meetings, this has devolved into a "What the hell is the motion? What did we just vote on?" Good, good, good.

Well, friends, I have to log off to take care of my kiddos. Garrett and Eli are not impressed that I've been watching this meeting for three hours.