“My understanding of the appointment was to have someone to cover the position if Dr. Calderwood was unavailable, out of town, etc.,” Hoffman said. “We were getting into a lot of time without a break for her, and so the board was trying to build in backup for her.”
The sanitarian is an environmental health specialist charged with a range of responsibilities including taking care of flooding, emergency preparedness, food safety, household hazardous waste, air quality, outdoor burning, septic systems, solid waste disposal, water quality and groundwater and wells.
“A doctor is preferable, but his education and training will do for the time being,” Hoffman said of the sanitarian. “Carol has assured me that she will continue to be available for advice.”
Hoffman also said he feels the commissioners have supported the public health department throughout the pandemic. Although most infected people recover from the novel coronavirus, COVID-19 has resulted in 140,922 deaths in the U.S. alone since March, according to the Johns Hopkins University and Medicine Coronavirus Resource Center.
“We’ve just about given carte blanche on resources they say they need to combat this thing,” Hoffman said.
At the same time, he acknowledged there have been some disagreements. He said the health and safety section of Montana Code Annotated, Code 50, makes it nearly impossible to not have disagreements because the code “almost completely has the commissioners abdicate their responsibilities in a time of crisis.”
