04-06-2021 - Public CommentsFrom: Erwin Tuna
To: City Clerk
Subject: Comments on the Establishment of a City Health Department
Date: Tuesday, April 6, 2021 3:40:37 PM
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To the City Council:
As a long-time resident, I must object in the strongest possible terms
to the continued efforts to establish a health department for the City
of West Covina at this time.
It is difficult to see how bootstrapping a local health department at
this time is constructive to the priorities that lay before us as a
community. We should be focusing on managing and controlling this
pandemic with the resources we have available.
Starting a health department requires community feedback, expertise and
logistical coordination that are difficult to justify for a city which
declared a fiscal emergency less than a year ago and is currently has
the dubious honor of being ranked as the 9th most at -risk city for
bankruptcy in California by the state auditor.
I urge the City Council to table this discussion for now, there are
better paths to take.
Respectfully,
Erwin Tung
From: Karen Hona
To: City cle
Subject: new health departrnent
Date: Saturday, April 3, 20214:23:42 PM
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To City Clerk,
We already pay LA County property taxes which pays for the LA County Health
Department. They have been trying their best and are cooperating with the California
Governor's guidelines to help us through this pandemic.
It will be very expensive to start up our own city health department and as tax payers we will
end up paying twice ..... once for the county health department and also for the city health
department. Plus as a city we already have a large budget problem and whatever health
department we try to start up would probably not be as good as the county's already is.
I think starting a West Covina Health Department is a bad idea all around.
Sincerely,
Karen Hon
From: Bridaette Ramirez
To: City Clerk
Subject: Oral Communications - 4/4/21
Date: Sunday, April 4, 2021 2:03:49 PM
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I want to reiterate that I do not feel that creating our own health department is the right move
for West Covina - at least not right now. The costs in time, energy, and, of course, financial
resources would put a large strain on our city that is inappropriate for these times.
I also want to push for a HEAR Commission to be established to address hate crimes and
racism in our community. These problems will not go away if we ignore them. We must all do
our part as residents in our everyday lives to address racism, sexism, homophobia,
transphobia, ableism, etc., but an officially designated commission would be an important
official step that the city can take to publicly support marginalized communities.
Bridgette Ramirez
From: Shahrzad Shisheaar
To: City Clerk
Subject: Public Comment for Council Meeting on 4/6/21
Date: Saturday, April 3, 2021 10:33:28 PM
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Dear City Council & Staff,
I am a 30 year WC resident and am very concerned about the direction the city is going and highly
encourage you to rethink the decision you've made regarding discontinuing services with the LA
County Health Department. There have been two meetings between the LA County Health
Department and WC residents; one of which included officials from Sacramento. During these
meetings, the myriad of services that the Health Dept. provides was described and it was eye-
opening. I can't imagine how a small city such as ours will be able to offer similar services. I was also
informed that WC would still be responsible for giving the County money as we do now! What??
And WC would still have to adhere to State regulations & mandates so not much would have
changed for us had we had our own Health Department at the end of last year. We also learned that
we would not be getting additional monies from the County through property taxes. So, we would
be paying to establish a health department without any financial relief at least from the County. I
truly believe that we should abandon this effort and focus our energies on more important city
functions.
But it does appear that 4 members of this council are bent on moving forward with this project
despite the city's financial woes and despite the strong opposition from its residents.
If the city does move forward with establishing its own health Department, I believe the hiring of a
health director should involve a fair and thorough recruitment effort; complete with job postings
and interviews. I know that Dr. Basil is vying for this position, but it is unfair practice to offer him
the post without offering others the chance to compete.
Thank you for your consideration,
Shahrzad Shishegar
From: Connie von Kohler
To: City Clerk
Subject: Public Comments: Concerns about City Public Health Department development
Date: Monday, April 5, 2021 9:04:50 PM
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To: West Covina City Council
April 7, 2021 meeting
Dear Mayor Letty Lopez-Viado and City Council Members;
I am Connie von Kohler, I reside at
I am a Registered Nurse with a Public Health license, Is Is an additional
ee that requires a Bachelor degree program to include public health). I have
lived in West Covina for about 54 of my 66 years. My parents moved here when I
was 2. 1 returned twice as an adult and have been here for the past 20 years.
I would like to ask the council to reconsider and abandon the process to develop a
city public health department. I fail to see how spending time, energy and tax dollars
to develop a city run independent health department will result in a benefit for all the
citizens of West Covina. I wonder why this major change to services is moving
forward and not first presented to the citizens to decide by an election.
I have followed the articles in the San Gabriel Valley Tribune. The Sunday March 28,
2021 San Gabriel Valley Tribune had two articles. Headlines — Front page story: More
health department funding sought: City officials (Pasadena) seeking outside sources to
increase services. Stating .......historically underfunded Pasadena Public Health Department.
Pasadena has a larger population than West Covina and will always receive more
funds. If Pasadena struggles with funding, how does the City Council think West
Covina will have enough funds?
On page 3 the article: Meeting to explore proposed city health care officer position set.
This article describes the one driver "disappointed by decisions such as the severe
restrictions placed on restaurants during the peak of the pandemic..." We are presently in a
worldwide health pandemic. No present-day health officials have had to deal with
anything like this. Yes there have been other worldwide health issues, HIV, Ebola to
name a few, but nothing in our lifetime like COVID-19. It's a shame we as a society
didn't learn more from the 1918 pandemic, rather we act the same.... refusing to wear
masks, claiming our rights have been violated and how dare the health department /
government impose on the citizens. This has been very difficult on lots of businesses
not just restaurants and gyms. Many have found innovative ways to connect with
clients / customers.
I recognize COVID-19 has added an additional challenge for restaurants in West
Covina. Restaurants have difficulty surviving in this city during the best of times. I will
spare you the long list I have seen come and go. But you do not make decisions to
form a city health department based on one business type and an unprecedented
pandemic.
If you follow the daily released data, Pasadena and Long Beach are often behind on
their data. In the end, those two cities following the same restrictions as the county,
state and national.
An article in the Tribune a few days later; City's push for health agency is contested,
presents several citizens offering concerns and opposing the continued effort to split
from the county. The points presented by my fellow citizens need to be seriously
considered by the city council. As elected officials, you need to be making decisions
that will benefit the citizens as a whole, not a few. I commend Brian Tabatabai, who
represents the area where I live. He has spelled out a number of issues and seems
to understand the complexity and cost of a health department.
I close by asking the city council to consider the needs of the citizens of West Covina,
acknowledge what you can actually accomplish that will benefit the citizens and leave
our health and well being to established health professionals. STOP the Plan to Split
for LACoDPH.
Respectfully,
Connie von Kohler, MSN, RNC-OB, CPHQ
From: Jaime Garcia
To: City Clerk
Subject: Oral Communications — 4/6/2021
Date: Tuesday, April 6, 2021 11:44:45 PM
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Good evening Mayor and Members of the West Covina City Council
The Hospital Association of Southern California which represents 94 hospitals in Los Angeles County
is opposed to your effort to establish a health department. Operating a public health department
requires a serious financial investment— stable funding stream - that attracts top talent who are
specialized in environmental health and infection prevention. This would include enforcing all health
and safety regulations with the California Department of Public Health. Now is not the time during a
pandemic to undermine the work and service that is currently provided to residents of West Covina,
its businesses and health care providers.
Jaime Garcia
Regional Vice President — Los Angeles
Hospital Association of Southern California
515 South Figueroa Street, Suite 1300
Los Angeles, CA 90071
T:213-538-0702
HOSPITAL
ASSOCIATION
OF SOUTHERN CAUFORNIA^