Rep. Huffman salutes Humboldt County Public Health, says it needs more funds

After congressman tours Public Health, he lauds them for hard work amid pandemic

July 07, 2021

North Coast Rep. Jared Huffman (D-San Rafael) toured Humboldt County’s Public Health facilities on Wednesday as part of a visit to the county, lauding the work it does, while noting more work remains with the county still shy of 50% fully vaccinated adults.

But he stressed he wants to see more funding for local Public Health.

“It’s remarkable,” he said. “You’ve got every square inch of space seemingly being used with high-tech equipment and cardboard boxes jammed in next to each other. This sort of speaks to the frenetic level of activity. The thing I’ll take away is I would like to get you a better Public Health facility. I would think with all the money we’re spending on infrastructure and with this public health moment that we’re living through, you really shouldn’t have to be doubled up in a cubicle with cardboard boxes next to your genomic sequencer.”

He noted there are vast disparities in the vaccination rates in the counties he represents, with Marin County boasting a 90% fully vaccinated rate, far higher than most other counties in the district.

“Marin (County) is a very different demographic and so some of the challenges with remote Indian reservations, and the history and the mistrust issues that come along with a federal anything when it comes to Indian Country, that’s a challenge we’re having to overcome,” said Huffman, “That doesn’t exist in a place like Marin County. Look I celebrate 90% — that’s a great number for them to reach. I would love to do whatever it takes to get every place up to that level.”When asked about what messaging he would encourage to boost vaccination levels, he urged reputable sources.“Talk to your doctor, talk to credible people that are not on YouTube shouting at you,” he said. “I think that would go a long way.”Public Health director Sofia Pereira thanked Huffman for the visit, noting Humboldt County addressed the virus very early in the pandemic.“We were one of the first rural counties in the United States to get COVID and our team just hit the ground running,” Pereira said. “So we’re just really grateful for your support. Federal investment in public health workforce and infrastructure is going to be really key as we continue to incorporate COVID-19 into our regular work and support the work of making our community healthy.”Humboldt County Sheriff William Honsal also thanked the congressman for his work.“One of the things that we’ve benefited from in Humboldt County was Homeland Security money,” Honsal said. “The lab that Dr. Jeremy (Corrigan) is in charge of was funded through Homeland Security. … Through the leadership of Dr. (Donald) Baird over the last 10 years since swine flu, we saw the need to have a local lab. If it wasn’t for Jeremy and his team at the local lab, we would have been far behind the curve.”
Ruth Schneider can be reached at 707-441-0520.

By:  Ruth Schneider
Source: Eureka Times Standard