Health Board Report (June)

Batty About Health

I went to the Health Board meeting today. Dr. Goldbaum, the health officer for Snohomish County Health District, reminded us that we are entering Rabies season. Rabies is a primary concern with bats. If you are exposed to rabies from a bat it’s important that you safely catch it. Don’t let it get away!

If you are injured by a bat you will probably need to have rabies shots, which are uncomfortable and expensive. However, if the health district can test the bat, and see that it doesn’t have rabies, you won’t need the shots. Folks have a tendency to shoo bats out of their homes, but if it has exposed you, you need to catch it, and get it tested.

The cost of septic inspections

We had also had an interesting presentation on the science of septic systems. The Snohomish Health District is charged with inspecting septic systems, so that our ground water stays free from organisms that cause disease.

In order to encourage folks with problem septic tanks to seek help, the SHD has kept fees for inspections low. Their philosophy is to be as helpful as possible and only get heavy handed when absolutely necessary. However, septic inspections can be expensive to the SHD, which puts the SHD in bind, because SHD will need make cuts next year if doesn’t get additional funding. Should the SHD raise the cost of septic inspections to meet budget deficit needs, even though this could cause some residents to be dissuaded from getting septic systems fixed? A tough decision is coming up.