Minutes

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Winthrop Board Of Health Meeting Minutes
November 16, 2021
REMOTE PARTICIPATION BY ZOOM
Call to order: 6:37 pm.
Roll call: Bill Schmidt, Chair, Jeanne Holgersen, Member, Marianne Dalton, Member.
Present: Wendy Millar-Page, Solid Waste and Recycling Manager;  Meredith Hurley, Director of Public Health and Clinical Services; Al Legee, Commissioner of Inspectional Services; Jillian Shaponick, Epidermis; Iliana Stephanie Perez, Elevate Aesthetics; Kurt Millar; Maryalice Sharkey, Carol Walker, Mothers Out Front; Julia Wallerce.
Review of minutes, October 12, 2021 and November 4, 2021: after review by fellow Board members and completion of edits requested, minutes approved unanimously 3-0.
Public comment: none.
COVID-19, Town of Winthrop, Board of Health, contact tracing, etc: Meredith Hurley, Director of Public Health and Clinical Services provides an update on covid-19 in Winthrop: currently 3% positivity rate. Eleven positive cases seen in the past week, including a few false positives. Meredith reports that the community tracing collaborative contract with the state expires November 30 2021. To address this, Winthrop, Revere and Chelsea, with assistance from North Suffolk Public Health Collaborative, have hired a regional public health nurse. Meredith is conducting interviews as well for a shared epidemiologist, a contact tracer and 2 resource coordinators for the 3 towns. The Metropolitan Area Planning Council (MAPC) has been assisting with getting hires from towns throughout Massachusetts.
Vaccines: Meredith reports that covid vaccines were given to 210 five-to-eleven-year-olds on November 6. Flu clinics have also been held, vaccinating 100 people so far.
The Parc: Meredith reports that the recent water main break flood occurring at the Parc caused evacuation of residents there, damaging the interior structure and electrical system. While assisting Parc staff with this incident, Meredith noted the emergency plan they had in place there was neither adequate nor comprehensive. She is requesting a revised emergency plan from Parc management prior to residents returning to the facility.
Grants: Meredith reports the Equitable Approaches to Public Safety grant has been awarded to Winthrop, in the amount of $449,000. This money will allow 5 new positions to be added to the Health Department: 3 behavioral health specialists, 1 resource coach and 1 peer recovery coach.
Meredith adds that there are only 4 other awardees of this grant in Massachusetts: New Bedford, Lawrence, Revere, Amherst, noting that Winthrop is the smallest municipality among the grantees.  Meredith’s team is also working on a new data-collection system with a company from CO. This has been a 6-month project that is about to go live. A Mass in Motion grant is another project Meredith is working on in conjunction with the cities of Chelsea and Revere.
Jeanne Holgersen asks about 80% vaccination rates for schools. Meredith replies that this will be school-specific. Currently the high school is about 79% vaccinated; once the threshold reaches 80%, unless the Board of Health makes regulations to the contrary, it is likely the mask mandate can be rescinded.
The Parc at Harborview: Al Legee, Commissioner of Inspectional Services reports that both Sharon Sicurella and Russ Sanford inspected the Parc the night of the water main break. Al states that a mold-remediation company has been brought in, a new water line is being laid, also extensive electrical repairs are being done. Al states that he was told by the person in charge at Parc that the plan had been submitted to Meredith, but it only actually arrived this afternoon on 11/16 @4 pm, and Meredith has not yet reviewed. Al reports that he is working on getting details from Parc management about what their plan is for food service, as catering needs to replace in-house meal preparation due to the kitchen needing to be shut down there. There will be 3 meals and a snack 7 days a week, and inspections need to be done for food safety, i.e. what personnel will be serving and if they are ServSafe certified, food temperatures kept within safe parameters for hot and cold foods, etc. Al states he has been told they plan to re-occupy on 11/17, but walk-thru has not yet been done by his staff. Al acknowledges the burden upon loved ones of having residents displaced, especially those with memory issues and dementia, but the paramount concern is whether the facility is safe for residents to return. Bill asks if return of residents is dependent upon Meredith’s and Al’s approval. Al confirms that it is. The Fire Department has signed off on sprinklers, but there are still other issues pending.
Governors Park pool safety: Bill Schmidt reports he could not find any details on pool safety in his research of other towns’ ordinances. Al states that he has a meeting scheduled with the commissioner in Chelsea this week, and will discuss what Chelsea has done and let the Board know his findings.
369 Shirley St: Al states that re-inspection is due, and by the next meeting he’ll have more to report.
40 Argyle St: Al states that re-inspection is also pending for this property, and will report on this as well at the next meeting.
59 Cottage Ave: Al reports that liens against the property are approaching $100,000, and his department issues citations daily. The Town’s attorney is contacting the bank, and the bank’s attorney is also involved. Al stresses that the concern is primarily for the occupants health and safety.
In other issues, Al reports that restaurants and life safety inspections are taking place, more to come after Thanksgiving, in conjunction with police and fire department inspections of establishments that sell liquor.
MRC update: Jeanne Maggio, Coordinator of Medical Reserve Corp (MRC) is not present this evening, deferring to next meeting.
Mother Out Front-Pesticides legislation: Maryalice Sharkey and Carol Walker, Mothers Out Front, appear before the Board asking for Board endorsement of the Massachusetts Schoolchildren Pesticide Protection Act, H.926. Maryalice states that this legislation would ban use of pesticides on school grounds, playgrounds and daycares. Bill points out that the Town of Winthrop has already banned toxins on all of the above, and that the Board has previously this year urged a public relations campaign providing education on the risks of glyphosate use by residents.  Maryalice replies that this act would extend the ban beyond Winthrop to cover all of Massachusetts. She reports that Mass. representative Carmine Gentile of Sudbury is sponsoring this bill; Maryalice reports that representative Jeff Turco is supporting this. Maryalice wants to garner support from PTO’s, PTA’s, and family organizations, encouraging that messages be sent to Rep Turco voicing that support. Carol Walker adds that the bill does have a good chance of passing, and further lists the health risks glyphosate has been linked to. The Board agrees to sign the form in support of this bill that Mothers Out Front has provided, unanimously approved 3-0.
Maryalice expresses thanks for this. She also thanks the numerous businesses who sponsored the Great Pumpkin Drop, a Halloween event that took place at Fort Banks.
Epidermis-services: Jeanne Holgersen thanks Jillian Shaponick, owner of Epidermis, for the documents that have been sent in to the Board so far, but lists numerous pieces that are still lacking. Bill states that the Board is trying to be reasonable concerning the timeline of the submission of requested documentation.
Jeanne details a comprehensive list of documents that are still not submitted. Marianne Dalton asks if this comprehensive list has been provided to Ms Shaponick, and Jeanne confirms that it was provided after the October 12th Board of Health meeting.  Ms Shaponick confirms receipt of the checklist. Bill states that there remain numerous issues to be resolved, such as Ms Shaponick contacting the Department of Public Health for licensing requirements for clinics, before the Board can give permission to Epidermis to continue to conduct business in Winthrop. Bill clarifies that the locations of services provided, even if services are identical in each location, determines which body would provide oversight, whether the Board of Nursing, Board of Medicine or the Department of Public Health. Ms Shaponick voiced understanding, and pledges to continue gathering and sending the documentation as requested to the Board for its review.
Elevate Aesthetics: Iliana Stephanie Perez, owner of Elevate Aesthetics, appears before the Board to request a license for her business. After extensive research on the matter, Jeanne provides a comprehensive list of documentation and requirements that the Board, and entities such as the DPH, Board of Nursing and Board of Medicine, mandate that businesses submit prior to consideration for approval to conduct business in Winthrop and Massachusetts as well. Ms Perez has a few documents to submit, but there remain a large number that are still lacking. Bill points out that the initial request from Ms Perez for licensing came in March of 2021, and at that time Ms Perez was told she needed to appear before the Board. However, the Board has not heard from Ms Perez again until now, and Ms Perez has been conducting business in the town per her report since May 2021. After listing multiple requirements and document requisites that Ms Perez does not have, Jeanne reviews that Ms Perez is performing outside of her scope of practice as an RN in Massachusetts. Ms Perez states that she feels she was misled by the directors of the school she attended, in that she was advised that she needed very little oversight and preparation in order to perform botox injections, micro needling and CRP, other than the 3-month training she underwent at the school headed by Dr Joseph Russo in Waltham. Bill offers a suggestion to Ms Perez that if she wants to investigate further whether she is within her scope of practice as an RN to perform the procedures listed above, she consult both an attorney and possibly the Board of Nursing, for her protection against any liability caused by her performance of said procedures. Jeanne informs Ms Perez that the Board’s objective is to protect the health of the community. Bill adds that if Ms Perez does obtain legal counsel that advises the Board is incorrect in assessing that she is not practicing outside her scope as an RN, she is free to return to the Board with this information in writing and again request license consideration. The Board cannot grant license to Ms Perez and Elevate Aesthetics to practice in Winthrop, and requests she cease practicing effective immediately. Ms Perez voiced understanding.
Anti-idling campaign: Julia Wallerce comes before the Board to request assistance in addressing the problem of excessive idling outside schools in Winthrop. She provides an overview of what idling is, and what harms it causes both to the environment and to the health of schoolchildren. Ms Wallerce states she has approached School Superintendent Lisa Howard multiple times with offers to provide flyers educating about the dangers of idling, with suggestions to enlarge signage prohibiting idling, but has not had success in achieving any initiatives. Ms Wallerce also reports asking police for assistance in enforcing anti-idling at the schools, but while she states police agree that it is a problem, nothing has been done.
Bill asks for clarification about how long idling (sitting in a car that is running but not moving) is allowed in Massachusetts, and the answer from mass.gov is no longer than 5 minutes. Ms Wallerce states that she has observed cars waiting to pick up children at the end of the school day idling for 30-40 minutes or longer, even during moderate temperature days. Jeanne states concern about the need to maintain comfortable temperatures in cars during extreme weather, for the sake of infants/preschool children that may be waiting with parents for siblings to be dismissed from school. The Board agrees to elevate this issue, focusing upon an educational campaign, utilizing the Transcript, WCAT and the Manager’s Blog. Marianne volunteers to research and write an article for the Transcript, as well as collaborate with Ms Wallerce, to start the education process for Winthrop citizens. Bill states that prior to any enforcement suggestions, education must be provided, for an issue that many may not have known existed. Ms Wallerce cites the Safe Routes to School website as a good resource to draw on for content.
NSPHC Environmental Group: Bill states he plans to attend the virtual meeting tomorrow, where discussion of legislation, community health and monitoring of air quality will take place. He will update the Board with any news.
Trash, recycling and solid waste disposal regulations: Bill asks Wendy Millar-Page, Solid Waste and Recycling Manager, if she has any recommendations after reviewing the final draft. She has one question about the citing of Mass General Law 44, which Bill clarifies was recommended by town attorneys.
Wendy stresses the need for swift action in making this regulation official, as until it is signed she cannot move forward in implementation. Discussion of how to do this virtually ensues; it is agreed to have Bill Schmidt hand-deliver the document to members’ workplaces for signatures tomorrow, and Bill will then hand-deliver to Wendy.
Black plastic—not recyclable: Bill reports there are 2 bills pending in the legislature, Senate 579 and House 869, both aiming to reduce single-use plastics from the environment. Bill will review language from both pending bills, and try to adapt sections referring to black plastic to regulations for the Town of Winthrop, to be reviewed at the next Board meeting.
Board of Health town website: nothing to report this month.
Board of Health workplan: Bill asks members to bring ideas about this to him to post for the December 16th agenda.
Jeanne asks when the Board will be meeting in person again. Bill reports that the State has allowed Zoom meetings to continue until April 2022. Wendy comments that the state is considering a hybrid model of meeting going forward, because participation by Zoom seems to engage more people who otherwise would not attend a live meeting.
Adjournment: motion to adjourn made 8:53 pm, approved unanimously 3-0.
Respectfully submitted, Marianne Dalton, Member