By Roger Gitlin – EYE ON DEL NORTE – April 25, 2022
We are hopeful someone on the Board will pull an item from the Consent Agenda for discussion at the Tuesday Board of Supervisors meeting.
Consent Agenda item #6 calls to hire a psychiatrist (a medical doctor who can treat and prescribe psychotropic and other appropriate medication to those frail patients in dire need).
Del Norte County is absent the position and for many years prior, there has been no qualified psychiatrist, an MD to address the needs of this growing population of mentally ill in Del Norte County.
Dr. Samuel Mark Ruben, MD, MH, FAACP awaits Board approval for this $124,000+ (part-time) position. Funding comes from the state and federal til..
Pulling the item from the Agenda is prudent, government and is helpful, allowing the public to learn the scope of this medical practioner’s responsibilities.
Too often, the Board in its quest to abbreviate meetings and move on to the lunch hour, places items on the Consent Agenda and unanimous (without discussion) votes take place. The public has no idea what is going on.
Two weeks back. On Consent Agenda, all five Board members rubberstamped a $532,600 Housing Homeless Aid Program (HHAP) application through Shasta County. With but 72 hours prior to Tuesday’s meeting, there was virtually no time to study the Agenda.
I suspect neither the Board nor the Public has any idea how these funds are or will be allocated.
Blind trust is not a good idea.
