SUCCESSFUL BEGINNING

400 vaccinations given on first day through cooperative effort.

The February 3 meeting of the Salmon City Council was a celebration of the first vaccination day against the COVID-19 virus in Lemhi County.

Eastern Idaho Public Health (EIPH) Director Geri Rackow and Jenny Tracy, Steele Memorial Center Marketing Manager, headed the meeting’s agenda with a report on the area’s ‘Vaccination Roll-Out Day.’

Tracy said the day came with the sudden news there were more vaccines than originally scheduled for the county and she said special thanks go to Rackow who spent hours on the phone contacting an extra 150 people eligible to receive the vaccine. A total of 400 vaccines were administered that day. She thanked the beautiful weather plus the many volunteer helpers, nursing staff, EMTs and the LDS Stake Center that provided the facilities for the crowd. Tracy said the day went amazingly smoothly and well. She said special thanks go to KSRA Radio for its communication help that day and throughout the pandemic.

Councilor Jim Baker and his wife were eligible recipients as were Councilor Fred Waidely and his wife. Both councilors remarked how incredibly smoothly the process of getting the shots went.

Rackow offered her thanks to all involved and said that Governor Brad Little has raised the limit for group gatherings from 10 to 50 people. She said exemptions to that rule can be granted by application and the forms for exemptions are on the Health District’s web site. She said the last two days leading up to the launch were of course frustrating but most problems were surmounted. The district is using a lottery system for vaccinations. By clicking on the COVID- 19 segment of the EIPH web page a form will ask the person’s age, name and preferred contact number and when vaccine is available EIPH will reach out to applicants and make appointments. Rackow added there is still a limited amount of vaccine but whatever amount is available is sent on a weekly basis.

Rackow also complimented the city on “Getting with the times” with the city’s new visual ability to see each other remotely.

Thanks to the expertise of Scott Benton and Todd Nelson, the city has recently added the popular “Go to Meeting” technology. It is still possible to hear the meetings live by calling prior to the meeting and obtaining a special access number.

The Salmon City Council meets at 6PM on the first and third Wednesday of every month.