KINGWOOD -— Concerns about federal prison transports were discussed at the Thursday meeting of the Preston County Board of Health.
Preston Health Department (PCHD) Administrator V.J. Davis said he has been told that the U.S. Marshals Service is not following the U.S. Bureau of Prisons COVID testing protocol for transfers. Davis said two recently transported prisoners have tested positive for COVID-19.
“[U.S.] Attorney General William Barr is supposed to get back to Sen. Manchin about why this is happening,” Davis said. “The prison personnel is doing all they can do. But if they (Marshals Service) keep sending in dominoes, they will start to fall. Once [COVID] gets into the guard population, they will take it home and it will be out in the public.”
Davis also noted, with school starting, the most populated buildings in Preston County for four days a week will be its schools.
Lucas Tatham of Modern Homestead gave an update on the Protect Preston campaign. Tatham said Protect Preston posters are being distributed to the schools, to local businesses and to the Preston County Chamber of Commerce.
He said printable copies of the poster can be downloaded at https://www.protectpreston.com/.
The posters read: “We pledge to protect Preston” and include drawings of a mask, hand-washing and distancing.
Davis said the PCHD has been awarded a $60,060 COVID grant and has received the first $30,000.
Davis said Preston, Mon, Harrison and Taylor will share an Epidemiology and Laboratory Capacity for Infectious Diseases Program grant.
He said the grant will enable the counties to add nurses and office assistants.
“We won’t be hiring them but we will have access to them,” he said.
Davis said each county will receive $77,500 for infrastructure.
He said among the purchases will be:
— $10,000 for a pharmacy refrigerator. Davis said this would allow the PCHD to store twice as much vaccine.
— $6,014 for a pharmacy freezer.
— $562 for traffic control cones and signs for outdoor clinic use.
— $3,200 for a cargo trailer to use for mobile clinics.
— $500 for signage for the trailer.
— $56,536 for a decontamination shelter system that includes heater, lights, water and shower stalls. Davis said the shelter itself will be inflatable and will be kept on the cargo trailer. He said the shelter could be attached to the one Mon County purchased and used as a field hospital.
He said $8,000 invoices have been sent in for possible refund through the CARES Act.
In other business, Davis said the state has suspended the requirement for restaurant inspections although they can still do them if they choose.
He said the PCHD will not be inspecting nursing homes and hospitals.
“We will be doing school kitchen inspections and looking at some restaurants,” he said.
The next meeting of the Preston Board of Health will be 7 p.m. Nov. 12.
TWEET@DominionPostWV
