CCMSD considers incentives, no mandates

Crook County Medical Services District is looking to reward employees who get vaccinated for COVID-19 through an incentivization program funded by the state. Money has been set aside at the state level for this purpose, said CEO Micki Lyons, and so it will just be a matter of figuring out the best way to utilize it locally.

At last week’s meeting of the Board of Trustees, Chairman Mark Erickson questioned whether this will be an incentive or a requirement.

“It’s still a choice, right?” he asked.

Lyons was quick to confirm that this is, indeed, the case.

“Absolutely,” she said. “We will not force employees to get vaccinated.”

The hospital and clinics will continue to follow the protocols they have used for the last couple of years, Lyons said, which include mask usage and hygiene practices.

Erickson also asked about the equity of the incentive program, considering that a high proportion of employees have already received the vaccine. Do they receive any form of reward for doing so? he asked.

Lyons confirmed that the program will reward anyone who is vaccinated by the end of the year, regardless of whether they got their shot before or after the program was announced.

Hospital Status

Lyons also provided an update on the situation within the hospital, which has been seeing unprecedented numbers of serious COVID-19 cases over the last couple of months. The good news, she said, is that no employees or residents have tested positive within the facility for the last two weeks.

“We’ll just keep watching the positivity rate and hopefully we’ll have some good news soon,” she said, telling the board that the county positivity rate is fluctuating and reiterating that CCMSD will consider reopening for visitation once the proportion of tests coming back positive drops below 10%.

“We’re still struggling to get people out when they need a higher level of care,” Lyons continued, explaining that bigger hospitals in the region often do have the beds and the ICU equipment available, but are lacking the staff to man them.

Consequently, she said, “We are taking care of high level patients now.”

In terms of being able to handle more serious cases than the hospital can take in right now, Lyons said the district could look at acquiring more vents. However, the more vents you have, the more staff you need to utilize them.

“Just because you have the equipment doesn’t mean you can use it – but if you have it, you should use it,” she said.

There is considerable funding out there right now for things such as staff recruitment and retention, Lyons said, and the district will be looking into this.

CCMSD performed 286 drive-up COVID-19 tests in September. These cost $40 and are intended for purposes such as travel, she said, so this total does not include the tests being performed in the clinics.

Lyons reminded the board that Crook County Public Health is now hosting booster shot clinics. The next will be on November 9 and 18 in Sundance and November 23 in Moorcroft and Hulett.

Anyone over the age of 18 qualifies for a booster of the Johnson & Johnson brand, as long as it has been two months since your last dose. For Pfizer or Moderna, you must be over the age of 65 and at least six months out from your last dose.

Call Public Health on 283-1142 to book an appointment for an upcoming clinic.