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About The Siuslaw news. (Florence, Lane County, Or.) 1960-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 30, 2019)
6A | WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 30, 2019 | SIUSLAW NEWS VETERANS from page 1A However, the commissioner assured those in attendance he would take their concerns to the commission. “I can advocate with the di- rector of the Health and Hu- man Services Department and I can advocate with the county administrator, and they can look into it and see if there is any possibility, or see what the resources are,” he said. “To actually direct a change and have the budget to cover that change, is probably going to take a vote of the full board.” Paul Gargis and Jerry Her- nandez are very active in veterans-related issues of all types. They initiated the let- ter-writing effort that prompt- ed Bozievich and Reiley’s visit. The situation is clear cut to the two Florence represen- tatives, who said they felt the county should provide addi- tional support for veterans in this area. “We have a great number of veterans living here and there is only one VSO, once a week. This makes it very hard for a veteran or veteran’s spouse to file a claim. In a lot of cases they simply quit trying. To file a claim here in Florence, a vet- eran has to get up by 5 a.m. or earlier, to go to a small office and hopefully be the first one there. … Sometimes, the VSO MEASLES from page 1A Measles is a highly conta- gious virus that can cause a high fever, cough, runny nose and red, watery eyes. Two or three days after symptoms begin, tiny white spots may appear inside the mouth, an early sign of infection. This is followed by a rash of flat, red spots which cover the body and are accompanied by a high fever. The rash and fever will typ- ically run their course after a few days, though in rare cases it can cause encephalitis (infec- tion of the brain), pneumonia, and low birth weight in babies born to infected women. Because the virus lives in the nose and throat of an infected person, it can spread to others through coughing and sneez- ing. “We actually don’t have any confirmed cases here in Lane County,” said Jason Davis, Lane County Health and Hu- man Services Public Informa- tion Officer. “Our efforts right now are really preventative in nature.” But because of the highly contagious nature of the virus, Lane County’s threshold for declaring an outbreak is a sin- gle confirmed case. could be prepared with- out the assistance of a certified and paid VSO, there could perhaps be more veterans served. Reiley said some of this has been consid- ered in the past, but there were concerns with non-accredited volun- teers doing claims work or assisting in that area. “Well we started down that pathway … and MARK BRENNAN/SIUSLAW NEWS what we found was those Lane County Commissioner Jay Bozievich and Lane County issues are so intertwined Veterans Services Program Supervisor Joseph Reiley meet with private information with area veterans. regarding claims issues, that we felt we were not office is closed, leaving no pri- than encouraging. “We recognize the need that utilizing that time efficiently, or notice,” Hernandez wrote in is out here, and we are trying so that didn’t work out the way his letter to Bozievich. VFW Post 3232 Command- to figure out the best way to we had hoped,” he said. The answers that Reiley er Tom Benedict also shared serve our constituents … I his experience with the com- don’t believe we have enough provided to the vets were not funding currently to have a what the men had hoped for missioner and supervisor. “I myself finally gave up try- full-time service officer out when they entered the meet- ing to get the service I needed here,” he said. “I am hearing ing, but the concern and car- here and went to the Veterans you though. … There is a need ing he expressed helped to Affairs office in Eugene,” Ben- and it’s a concern and we want soften his thoughts on the edict said. “Shannon (John- to address it. We just have to likelihood of an increase in son), who has been serving as figure out the best way to do VSO time for Florence. “With regards to the meet- our VSO, has been doing an that.” One of the ideas considered ing, most felt that meeting outstanding job, but because of the logistics I was unable at the meeting was utilizing went well and was productive,” to go down to his work space volunteers to work with veter- said Gargis, who summed up in time to be seen early, nor ans that are seeking some type the feelings of the group after of assistance from the county. the meeting. “I feel that we could I spend time waiting.” These individuals would were told that under the pres- While Reiley, who leads the veterans service programs help with some types of claims ent situation there is a lack for Lane County, understood while leaving others to the of funding that would enable the concerns expressed at the VSO. If some of the paper- the county to provide for ad- meeting, his response was less work required to file a claim ditional time here in Florence “If we even get one case, we’ll declare an outbreak,” said Da- vis. “And we’ll send out a press release confirming that case and also letting people know where that person has been in the last two weeks.” According to the Centers for Disease Control and Pre- vention (CDC), “measles is so contagious that if one person has it, 90 percent of the people close to that person who are not immune will also become infected.” Those infected with measles can spread the virus four days before and four days after the rash appears. As such, it is recommend- ed that individuals who dis- play symptoms call their local health authority before visiting a doctor’s office or hospital. Protection against measles can be substantially increased through vaccination. The MMR vaccine, which includes vaccination against the viruses mumps and rubella, is gener- ally administered to children once between nine and 15 months of age and again before reaching six years old. MMR vaccine refusal, how- ever, has been on the rise over the last decade. Controversy surrounding a 1998 report which linked the MMR vaccine to autism and later celebrity endorsement of the claim has been the genesis of a rise in skepticism about the safety of the vaccine, though this opinion has been widely rejected by the CDC, the Na- tional Academy of Medicine and other major research insti- tutions. Medical authorities have as- sociated the phenomenon of vaccine refusal with increased risk for those who are not vac- cinated as well as those who are. Among the 35 cases of mea- sles in Clark County this year, 34 were reportedly unimmu- nized. The LCPH alert comes as visitation limitations were im- plemented on Friday by Peace- Health’s Eugene hospital Sa- cred Heart Medical Center at Riverbend. The hospital has restricted visitation to labor and deliv- ery, mother-baby and neonatal intensive care units, citing the rise in measles and influenza cases. Visitations are restricted for individuals under the age of 21 or those who demonstrate any of the following symptoms: • Fever (100 degrees or higher) • Cough • Sore throat • Headache • Redness or swelling of the eyes • Diarrhea • Runny nose • Vomiting As with measles, the spread and effect of the influenza vi- rus can be mitigated with up- to-date vaccinations. Washing hands regularly and covering one’s mouth when coughing or sneezing can also help pre- vent its spread. Sick individuals are encour- aged to stay home from work or school. Restrictions on hospital vis- itation have yet to make it as far as Cottage Grove or Flor- ence. “We don’t have any visitation restrictions in place at Cottage Grove Community Medical Center,” said Catherine Kroll, Director for Infection Preven- tion at PeaceHealth. “We’re evaluating the situation daily and would make decisions about visitation based on what type of spread is happening in the community.” Information on exposure locations and the measles in- vestigation in Clark County can be found online at www. clark.wa.gov/public-health/ measles-investigation. for a VSO to meet with our Veterans.” He added, “Commissioner Bozievich recommended that we approach the city and re- quest that the city help fund this position, as is done in oth- er municipalities. 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